September 11th 2001
Today marks the 14th anniversary of September 11th 2001 and all members of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team want to remember all the lives that were lost in New York City, Pennsylvania and Washington DC. Starting in the 2002 season the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball team had adopted the wearing of US Flags on their home and away uniforms and baseball caps and helmets as a symbol of support and remberance. The traditions have carried on every year as we remember the tradgey of 9/11 as a reminder of all those who lost their lives. On today's anniversary of 9/11/2001 our thought and prayers are with the families and friends of the victims.

The Star Spangled Banner by Sequenced By Gary Wachtel

YBL Stars to Play at Fenway Park, September 29th at 12:00pmThe Yawkey Baseball League has been invited by the Boston Red Sox to play their All Star Game at Baseballs most beloved park, Fenway Park. The Bill Stewart Stars will take on the Dan Tarpey Stars. Game time is 12:00 and free admission. The 2014 YBL Champion Somerville Alibrandis will send coach Bernie Driscoll, along with players Marc DesRoches, Mike Maguire, Chris McKenzie, Chris Foundas and Marc Adessa to play in the game. Please come down and support the league and the players.

Somerville Alibrandis receive Championship Trophy at BoSox Club Awards Luncheon
The BoSox Club, the Official Booster Club of the Boston Red Sox, honored the 2014 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club at its annual Awards Luncheon, on September 24th at the Dedham Marriott. The BoSox Luncheon is an annual event that the BoSox Club runs to honor all the Champions from all of the area amateur local baseball leagues as well as Little League, American Legion, High School and College teams from the state. This was the 15th time that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have been invited to attend this very special event. Team President David Treska, Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, General Manager Mike Powers, Marc DesRoches, Anthony Perry and Sal Mendonca were in attendance for the event.

Alibrandis defeats AlThomas Athletics to win 2014 YBL Championship!!!!!!!
For the 15th time the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club won the 2014 Yawkey Baseball League Chamionship. The team after a slow start went on a 18 game winning streak, thier last 10 of the regular season which earned them the #1 playoff seed and then thier first 8 of the playoffs - sweeping the Black Sox and the East Boston Knights getting them into the YBLCS where they defeated AlThomas 4 games to 1. The clincher was a close 3-2 game at Trum Field where Stan DeMartinis drove in the winning run in the bottom of the 6th.

25th Anniversary Celebration
The Somerville Alibrandis celebrated its 25th season of play in the Yawkey Baseball League with a pregame ceremony honoring its storied history. First picthces were thrown by coaches that covered the teams history, David Treska, Ken Jones( represeting his father Wally Jones ), Mike Powers and Bernie Driscoll all took part in the cereony. Also Championship rings from 2014 were presented to the teams longest active members, Tony Alibrandi, Marc DesRoches, Justin Crisafulli and Sal Mendonca. The team then went on to defeat the McKay Club as they wrapped up play in the 2014 regular season.

NSPBA Names three Somerville Alibranids into 2014 Hall of Fame Class
The National Semi Pro Baseball Association has named its Hall of Fame Class for 2014 and three members of the Somerville Highlander Alumni/Alibrandis Baseball Club have been inducted. Team Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, Player/Coach Mike Powers and Infielder Kevin White will be enshrined in the NSPBA Hall of Fame and Museum at a ceremony in Evansville, Indiana this upcoming November. They join David Treska who was part of the inaugural class in 2013. Tony has been the primary sponsor( Alibrandis Barber Shop ) of the team since the 1993 season and in that time the team has gone on to win a record 14 YBL Championships. Mike was the winning pitcher in the teams first game in 1990 and was named to multiple All Star games, and then went on to coach the team to 10 YBL Titles in 11 seasons highlighted by 9 in a row( 1999-2008 ). Kevin white is regarded as the best second baseman in the history of the YBL. He is a 10 time YBL Champion and is the only player in league history to be a regular season, post season and all star game Most Valuable Player. All three are already members of the YBL Hall of Fame. They are also joined by Dave McKay( McKay Club/League Presidnet ) Al Thomas( sponsor AlThomas Club - 5x YBL Champ ) and Walter Bentson( umpire/umpire in chief ) from the Yawkey League who are also being inducted this fall. For full information on the Hall of Fame ceremony, please click on the headline link.

Mike Powers Inducted into the 2013 Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame
Mike Powers has been a part of the Yawkey Baseball League since 1988 spanning over 25 years and in that time he has one of the most distinguished careers in the leagues history. In recognition of his accomplishments on and off the field, he was part of the 2013 Class of YBL Hall of Famers. Mike was a 5 time All Star Player and a 12 All Star Coach, his playing career started with the Cambridge Bucs and after a season there he joined the Somerville Highlander Alumni Baseball Club in the 1990 season. Mike was the starting and winning pitcher in the teams first game and was for the early part of the teams existence their best pitcher and a standout outfielder. Powers was a force in the old fall tournament, the Bill Stewart Memorial Cup leading the teams to 2 titles in 1991 and 1992  being named the events Most Valuable Player in 1992. In 1993 Mike was the winning pitcher at the very first YBL All Star Game at Fenway Park. Once the Alibrandis Club started to make the playoffs Mike was a mainstay in the middle of the order and had a knack to always come up with big hits, evidenced by his status as the teams career leader in grand slams and was recognized by his peers winning a Silver Slugger Award in 2001. At the same time Mike began to lead the team off the field as its field manager starting in the 1997 season. In that role Mike set himself apart as the winningest coach in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League posting a 316-79-3 record in the regular season, being named Manager of the Year in 1997, 2000, 2002 and 2003 and was the head coach at Fenway Park 6 times and lead the Yawkey League to our firsts victory against the US Military All Stars in 2008. In these 12 seasons as the manager he won 10 Yawkey Baseball League Championships, posting a record of 106-30 and highlighted by a record 9 titles in row from 1999 to 2007. Since his retirement from his career in uniform, he has worked behind the scenes with the team as general manager of the Alibrandis Club and with the Yawkey League in leading the All Star Committee  highlighted by teams that defeated the US Military All Stars and took home our first EMass All Star Classic Championship both in 2013.

Alibrandis Honored at YBL 2013 Awards Dinner
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has been honored with awards that both have recognized the team and its players in recognition of the 2013 YBL Championship Season this past summer at the annual Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame Awards Dinner. Individual awards were given to Ted Dziuba who won his second consecutive Gold Glove Award at catcher and Mike Maguire won his third consecutive Gold Glove in the outfield. Dziuba also won his first Silver Slugger Award as the YBL's best hitting catcher. Brian Tanguy won his second Fireman of the Year as the best closer in the league. Bernie Driscoll won his second Manager of the Year award after leading the team to a 40 win season. David Treska was named the YBL Executive of the Year for the second time and was given a plaque in honor of his induction into the National Semi Pro Baseball Hall of Fame. The highlight of the individual awards was the induction of Mike Powers into the YBL's Hall of Fame. The team was also given awards for their division title, Franchise of the Year, Championship Awards for each player and the BoSox Trophy for the 14th time in the teams 24 year history. The YBL also honored Dziuba who played and Treska and Powers who helped with the administration of the leagues first ever Eastern Mass All Star Classic Championship.

The BoSox Club Honors the 2013 YBL Champions!
The BoSox Club, the Official Boster Club of the Boston Red Sox, honored the 2013 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club at its annual Awards Luncheon, this past September at the Newton Boston Marriott. The BoSox Luncheon is an annual event that the BoSox Club runs to honor all the Champions from all of the area amatuer local baseball leagues as well as Little League, American Legion, High School and College teams from the state. This was the 14th time that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have been invited to attend this very speical event. Team President David Treska, Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, General Manager Mike Powers, and Sal Mendonca were in attendance for the event and were presented with the Championship Trophy by Boston Red Sox Hall of Famer Tommy Harper.

Alibrandis Play with YBL'ers in Winterball Game for Toys for Tots
For the firth year in this events 13 years, member of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club took part in the annual Winterball Game at English High School.
Winterball began as a concept in 2001 to extend the baseball season. Beginning in 2004, the game partnered with Toys for Tots and the United States Marines, requiring each player to bring a toy for a child-in-need. The tempature for the game on December 7th was 37 degrees. David Treska played in the game and Mike Powers coached this year due to injury. Along with them were YBL current and former players all helping the toy drive. For more information on this game, please click on the headline link.

Alibrandis Players Take Part in 100 Innings of Baseball for ALS
For the third year in a row members of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have taken part in the annual 100 Innings of Baseball. The game which takes over part of 2 days on Columbus Day weekend, was supported by Mike Powers, Sean Sullivan, Ted Dziuba and Mike Powers. The 100 Innings of Baseball Spectacular was born in 2004 with the arrival of Curt Schilling to the Boston Red Sox as a fundraiser for Curt's Pitch for ALS program to aid the fight against Lou Gehrig's disease. The world's longest game continues 100 straight innings and lasts about 33 consecutive hours, and to date has raised more than $600,000.
This was the 10th Annual game in 2013, proceeds supported ALS through The Angel Fund. Walter Bentson, the umpire chief of the Yawkey Baseball League, continues his mission to fight ALS. For more information on this event or to donate please click on the headline link.

Somerville Alibrandis win 2013 Yawkey Baseball League Championship
For the 14th time in the teams 24 seasons of play in the Yawkey Baseball League, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the Revere Rockies 4 games to 1 to win the 2013 Championship. It was a historic season for the team from Somerville as they set YBL records for regular season wins( 30 ) and for the most wins in a regular and post season( 40 ). The 40-4 year maybe a record that will stand for sometime, possibly making this the best team in team and league history. After the 30-3 regular season they swept the first two rounds( Medford 3-0 and the Braves 3-0 ) then defeated the #2 seed Revere in 5 games with a 3-0 shutout in the series clincher.

Lowell Spinners invite 2012 YBL Champs to throw out first pitch
The Lowell Spinners invited the 2012 Somerville Alibrandis Yawkey Baseball Champions to throw out the first pitch prior to their game versus the Vermont Lake Monsters at LeLacheur Stadium. Team President David Treska threw out the pitch and was joined on the field by Team Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, GM Mike Powers, Head Coach Bernie Driscoll, Lamarre Rey, Sean Sullivan, Sal Mendonca, Mike Maguire and Ted Dziuba.

The Yawkey Baseball League took home the title in the 2nd Annual Eastern Massachusetts Amateur Baseball All Star Classic Tournament by defeating the Intercity League 9-5 in 10 Innings in the opening round and then defeating the Cranberry Baseball League 7-6 at Rockland Stadium. The team that was made up off All Star from all 16 YBL teams was lead by Eric Bellavia the manager of the East Boston Knights. The Most Valuable Player of the tournament was the YBL's Luis Rodriquez of the Revere Rockies.

The 9th Annual 100 Innings Baseball Game was held this past weekend of October 20th & 21st at Adams Field in Quincy, MA. The proceeds of this event will benefit The Angel Fund for ALS research. Somerville Alibrandis current and former players Marc DesRoches, Ted Dziuba, Sean Sullivan, David Treska and Matt Deeb played parts of this game over the weekend. The event was organized by YBL Umpre / Hall of Famer Walter Bentson. Other YBL players Dan Pill from the Brighton Minutemen and Angelo Colluci from the Stoneham Sabers also took part to help raise funds withthis event. Please click on the headline line for more information and if you wish to donate to this very worthy casue.

Alibrandis All Stars Shine at Fenway Park All Star Game
The Yawkey Baseball League made its return to Fenway Park and played a post season All Star Game at the most beloved ballpark. The Boston Red Sox open their doors on October 6th on a perfect fall day for the match up of the Dan Tarpey Stars and the Bill Stewart Stars. Somerville was represented with 4 players, Mike Maguire, Ted Dziuba, Jon Morse and Bobby Barrett. Bernie Driscoll and his staff lead the Bill Stewart Stars to a victory. The team is so grateful for the change to play at Fenway Park and want to thank the Boston Red Sox for thier support of the Yawkey Baseball League. For a full game summary, videos and pictures from the game, please go to yawkeybaseball.com

Somerville Alibrandis Win 2012 Yawkey Baseball League Championship
For the 13th time the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has won the Yawkey Baseball League's Championship. The team earned the series win with a dramatic 7th inning to walk off with the game 5 win 4-3 over the Malden Bulldogs in winning the series 4 games to 1. Marc DesRoches was named the YBLCS Most Valueable Player.
We Are the Champions

David Treska inducted into National Semi Pro Hall of Fame Class of 2013
The founder of the Somerville Highlander Alumni / Alibrandis Baseball Team and YBL All Star player David Treska was inducted into the National Semi Professional Baseball Associations Hall of Fame's 2013 Class. Treska started the team in 1990 and went on to play for 16 seasons, making 5 All Star teams, winning 2 Gold Gloves and being on the field for 8 Championships. As team president he has served on the Board for 15 years, being named Executive of the Year in 2009 with the team being named Franchise of the Year 3 times. "I was very surprised to hear of this honor when I got the call from Tim Turpin, but am truly honored and could not be happier for being inducted to the NSPBA Hall of Fame", Treska said when asked about this award. The ceremony will be held at time to be announced in 2013, plese check on the NSPBA website for infomation.

Somerville Alibrandis Advice to 2012 YBL Championship Series
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball team defeated the Stoneham Sabers 3-1 in round 2 of the 2012 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs to advance to their 13th Finals apperance. This was the 1st time these two teams meet up in postseason, with the local 9 taking droping game 1 of the series and were able to take the next 3 to win the series this past Sunday at Recreation Park in Stoneham. This sets up a rematch of the 2011 YBLCS against the Malden Bulldogs. The Bulldogs advanced by upsetting the Al Thomas Athletics 3 games to 1. Please click on the headline link to go to the Yawkey Baseball League website for schedule, live twitter updates and complete box scores.

Somerville Alibrandis Sweep South Boston in Round 1 YBL Playoff Series
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball team defeated the South Boston Saints 3-0 in round 1 of the 2012 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs. This was the 6th time these two teams have meet up in postseason, with the local 9 taking all of the series with a impressive 21-1 all time record against the Saints. After playing a very familiar foe the team will now take on a 2nd year franchise they have never meet in round 2. The Stoneham Sabers advanced by upsetting the East Boston Knights in a 3 game series weep. The schedule is set to start later this week, please click on the headline link to go to the Yawkey Baseball League website for schedule and score updates.

The 2012 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs start August 16th and the Somerville Alibrandis(25-8) go into them as the #1 seeded team in the eight team tournament. Manager Bernie Driscoll leads the team for the second straight season into the postseason. This year they match up with the #8 seeded South Boston Saints(17-15-1). A team they have matched up five times over the years, three of those times in the Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series. For scores and updates please click on the headline link for the YBL site. Here is the schedule:

8/16

Thu

7:30PM

Somerville Alibrandis @ South Boston Saints

Ronan Park

8/17

Fri

8:00PM

South Boston Saints @ Somerville Alibrandis

Trum Field

8/18

Sat

8:00PM

South Boston Saints @ Somerville Alibrandis

Trum Field

8/19

Sun

8:00PM

South Boston Saints @ Somerville Alibrandis

Trum Field

8/20

Mon

7:30PM

Somerville Alibrandis @ South Boston Saints

Ronan Park

Somerville Alibrandis Win 2012 Ted Williams Division Title
The 2012 Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the Beacon Hill Dodgers last night to improve their season record to 25-7 to win the Ted Williams Division of the Yawkey Baseball League and earn the #1 overall seed in the upcoming playoffs. This is the 16the season in a row that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has made it to postseaon play. The playoffs are set to start Monday night August 13th. The best of 5 series will start at Trum Field and for full playoff schedule, scores and updates please check at yawkeybaseball.com.

Somerville Alibrandis pitcher Rob Finneran was drafted in the 37th round by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2012 June ameteur draft. Finneran who pitched at Bentley College joined the team this year and in his 2 outings he earned a save and struck out 6 batters with a 0.00 earned run average. Finneran joined the short season A ball affiliate of the Tampa Bay Ray, the Hudson Valley Renegades of the New York-Penn League. Please click on the headline link for a full story from the Bentley Baseball team website.

Former Somerville Alibrandis pitcher Scott Oberg was drafted in the 15th round by the Colorado Rockies in the 2012 June ameteur draft. Oberg played for the Somerville Alibrandis at the end of the 2007 season and went on to enjoy a great collegate career at UConn. Oberg made one apperacne and struck out 3 batters with a 0.00 earned run average pitching 2 innings. Oberg joined the short season A ball affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, the Tri-City Dust Devils. Please click on the headline link for a full story from the Tewksbury Patch website.

Alibrandis well represented at YBL All Star Game at LeLacheur Park
The YBL held a All Star Game at the home of the Lowell Spinners and the Somerville Alibrandis were very welll represented helping lead the Stewart Stars to a victory. Bernie Driscoll was named as the manager of the game and Mark Adessa was named the games Most Valueable Player.

Alibrandis Golf Tournament - June 8, 2012 at Quail Ridge CCHelp support the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club.All monies raised are used to go to the baseball program to ensure the finest team and experience possible.Donations, Golfers and Volunteers are needed.This is our major fundraiser of the year and your support is greatly appreciated. For more information please read the handout to this story and for information on the course please click on the headline link.

The BoSox Club, the Official Boster Club of the Boston Red Sox, honored the 2011 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club at its annual Awards Luncheon, this past September 16th at the Newton Boston Marriott. The BoSox Luncheon is an annual event that the BoSox Club runs to honor all the Champions from all of the area amatuer local baseball leagues as well as Little League, American Legion, High School and College teams from the state. This was the 12th time that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have been invited to attend this very speical event. Team President David Treska, Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, Coach Cam Lynch, Bernie Driscoll, Mike Powers, Marc DesRoches, Matt Deeb, Jay Wisner, Justin Crisafulli, Sean Sullivan, Sal Mendonca, Andrew Babb and Mike Maguire were in attendance for the event and were presented with the Championship Trophy by Boston Red Sox Hall of Famer Tommy Harper.

Derek Bates to be inducted into YBL Hall of FameOne of the best pitchers in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League, Derek Bates will be inducted into the league's Hall of Fame at the annual awards dinner on December 3rd. Derek was an impressive young pitcher when he joined the team and soon stand out as one of the best pitchers in the league. This was confirmed when Derek was voted by the league mananger's as the Pitcher of the Year in three consecutive seasons( 2002, 2003 and 2004 ) and earning a start at Fenway Park in a YBL All Star Game. Derek suffered an injury in 2006 that took him off the field, but Derek worked hard to get back to be the pither he was prior to the injury and did just that and was rewarded with winning the YBL Comeback Player of the Year in 2007. His final performance was one for the ages as he struck out the final 9 batters he ever faced in getting the victory of a must win game 5 versus AlThomas. Derek was a member of 8 Championship Teams during his career.

The Yawkey Baseball Leauge announced the winners of their 2011 regular season awards. The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club was honored with winnings being named Franchise of the Year for the 4th time. Bernie Driscoll(2B) and Mike Maguire(OF) were named to the Gold Glove team as the best defensive players at thier positions. Silver Sluggers for the best hitters were given to Davide Scioli(SS), Maguire(OF) and Andrew Babb(P). Babb was also named to the 2011 All Rookie Team. The team will also be honored for their 12th YBL Championship. These awards will be given out at the YBL Awards Dinner on December 3rd at the IBEW Hall in Dorchester.

Two Somerville Alibrandis Baseball players were recognized by the National Semi-Professional Baseball Association this week. Ted Dziuba and Chris Foundas who were the Co-Most Valueable Players of the 2011 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series, have been named 2nd Team All Americans for the season. Dziuba had a great regular season and lead all players in the postseason with 18 hits in 11 games posting a .529 batting average. Foundas was also among league leaders during the season and lead the team with 4 playoff wins and posting a 1.00 ERA in 21 innings pitched.

For the 12th time and the second year in a row the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club won the Yawkey Baseball League Championship. The series which only went 5 game lasted over 2 full weeks with all the rain that has hit the area but the wait was well worth it. The final game was won by a score of 8-1 at Maplewood Park in front of many of the teams friends, alumni and families. This year the team had series co-Most Valueable Players, Ted Dziuba and Chris Foundas. Congratulations to the teams first year on field staff made up of Bernie Driscoll, Marc DesRoches, Justin Crisafulli and Cam Lynch.

Al DiTullio( 11.20.62 - 08.13.11 ), the sideline reporter from COMCAST who covered many Yawkey Baseball League games over the years passed away over the weekend. Al was a great friend of the YBL and of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club. We all remember his support of all league events with his tireless work to promote the Yawkey Baseball League and we were especially thankful for his support of our 20th Anniversary Game coverage in 2009( pictured with Manager Mike Powers at the 20th Anniversary Game doing one of his many sideline reports that night ). This is a very sad loss for everyone who knew him. All of our thoughts and prayers are with his friends and family.

Somerville Alibrandis Win 2011 Ted Williams Division Title
The 2011 Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the McKay Club Beacons on the last day of the Yawkey Baseball League Season to win the Ted Williams Division and earn the #2 overall seed in the upcoming playoffs. This is the 15the season in a row that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has made it to postseaon play. The playoffs are se to start Monday night August 15th against the #7 seeded Medford Maddogs. The best of 5 series will start at Trum Field and for full playoff schedule, scores and updates please check at yawkeybaseball.com.

The BoSox Club Honors the 2010 YBL Champions
The BoSox Club, the Official Boster Club of the Boston Red Sox, honored the 2011 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club at its annual Awards Luncheon, this past September 22nd at the Newton Boston Marriott. The BoSox Luncheon is an annual event that the BoSox Club runs to honor all the Champions from all of the area amatuer local baseball leagues as well as Little League, American Legion, High School and College teams from the state. This was the 11th time that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have been invited to attend this very speical event. Team President David Treska, Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, Manager Rob McDonough, Mike Powers, Marc DesRoches, Matt Deeb, Ted Dzubia, Anthony Tomaro and Tom McDough were in attendance for the event and were presented with the Championship Trophy.

2010 YBL Champions

2010 Yawkey Baseball League Champions
For the 11th time in the teams history the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club took home the Yawkey Baseball Championship, defeating the West Roxbury Bluefish 4 games to 1. First year coach Rob McDonough guided the team to the title in what was a classic series, which was capped off by a 3 run rally in the 7th inning of game 5 to keep that game going and 3 more in the 8th to take the lead that earned the team the 2010 YBL Crown.

3rd Annual Alumni Softball Game goes to "Current" Team, 26-22.
The 3rd Annual Somerville Alibrandis Alumni Softball Game was played at St Peters Field on November 1st and the team made up of players from the 2009 team defeated the Alumni Team 26-22. The victory put the Alumni down 2 games to 1 in the series. This is the highest scoring game of the series to date. Thanks go to all the took part in the game and to Marc DesRoches for helping get the permit for the field to Rob Nickerson for the food at Joe Sent Me....

Alibrandis Pitcher Derek Bates retires from the YBLOne of the best pitchers in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League, Derek Bates called it a career at the end ot the 2009 season by announcing his retirement after the playoffs. Derek was an impressive young pitcher when he joined the team. He fit right in with a staff of Shawn Nadeau and Marc DesRoches and after a few years began to stand out as one of the best pitchers in the league. This was confirmed when Derek was voted by the league mananger's as the Pitcher of the Year in three consecutive seasons( 2002, 2003 and 2004 ) and earning a start at Fenway Park in a YBL All Star Game. His final performance was one for the ages as he struck out the final 9 batters he ever faced in getting the victory of a must win game 5 versus AlThomas. His hard work and team first attitude will be missed and in his honor the team has retired his uniform #40.

20th Season end Somerville Highlander/Alibrandis Baseball Club in Semi Finals

The Somerville Highlander Alumni / Alibrandis Baseball Team completed its 20th Season in the Yawkey Baseball League by being defeated by the Malden Bulldogs 3-0 in the semi-final round of the 2009 YBL Playoffs. This trip marked the 14th trip to the playoffs in the teams historic past, after going 20-11-1 in the regular season. That was the 5th best record, but earned then the #6 seed in the tournament. In round 1, Somerville matched up with the AlThomas Athletics. AlThomas came off another impressive season winning their conference and earning the #3 seed. The series like their last meeting in the playoffs went the distance and in game 5 Somerville took the deciding game on the back of great relief pitching of Derek Bates who got out of a bases loaded jam with no outs in the 5th. Bates, in what was his final apperance in a YBL game struck out all 9 batters he faced. However the run for another league championship was not meant to be as Somerville ran into the best team of the regular season, the Malden Bulldogs who has a 25-6-1 record and the playoffs #1 seed. The sweep ended the 20th season, and also saw the end to the career of Marc DesRoches who after 14 years as the most decorated players ever in the YBL announced his retirement. The Somerville Alibrandis team ended with an overall record of 23-16-1.

Marc DesRoches Wins 2009 YBL Batting Title

Somerville Alibranids third baseman and pitcher, Marc DesRoches has won the 2009 Yawkey Baseball League Batting Title with a .470 average. Congratulations to Marc on this honor.

The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team has set up a group on Facebook to assist in finding Alumni players over the 20 seasons. This will allow us to help communicate and network better with everyone has been a large part of this teams sucess over the years.

Please click on the headline link to get to the group and join the group.

It is with deep regret that YBL Presidnet Dave McKay reported of the the passing of Steve George. Steve is a Yawkey League and Dorchester Hero. A tremendous husband, father, coach and community activist has been lost.
Our League and City will miss the great contributions of this gentle man. Steve along with his sons Doug and Kevin are members of the Yawkey Baseball Hall of Fame. That is a record that will never be broken -- three members of the same family in our Hall of Fame. The George Family and Steve in particular have been instrumental in helping to make the Yawkey League one of America's top amateur baseball programs. All the membes of the Somerville Alibranids Baseball Club would like to express their sympathy to the Greorge Family during this very difficult time.

Please click on the headline link read his obituray and to sign the guestbook.

YBL Plays on Doubleday Field at the Baseball Hall of Fame
This past weekend 2 Yawkey Baseball League teams, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team and the Revere Rockies, traveled up to Cooperstown, New York to play at the birthplace of baseball Doubleday Field at the Baseball Hall of Fame. The teams played 2 exhibition games that was viewed by many of the tourists who were also visiting the Hall of Fame. Revere won game 1, and the two teams tied game 2.

The second annual Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Alumni Softball Game took place October 11th atg Trum Field. The game featured teams made up of current members of the team against a team comprised of retired former players. The Alumni team defeated the 2007 YBL Champs in 9 innings 13-10 to take the innagural game, this year the current players evened the all time series with a 17-10 victory. After the game the team went back to On the Hill Tavern accross from Trum Field where the team watched game 2 of the American League Championhsip Series. The event put an official wrap up on the 2008 season. Please click on the headline link for On the Hill Tavern, and support them for all of the help they provided with this event.

Somerville Alibrandis outfielder Billy Fitzgerald has again been selected to play in the Old Time Baseball Game August 21st, 2006 at 7:00 p.m. at St. Peter's Field in Cambridge a game that will benefit the The Todd J. Schwartz Memorial Fund. This is the thrid time that Bill has been invited to play. For the secoond season in a row team President David Treska will be one of the umpires working the game. Other Alibrandis players who have participated include Marc DesRoches, Sal Mendonca and Jon Morse.
The game was started in 1994 by Boston Hearld and WEEI's Steve Buckley as a response to the baseball player's strike. It is now a "celebration of baseball" played by some of Greater Boston's most talented high school and collegiate athletes, with all proceeds from the event donated to a local charity. The young talented players wear vintage uniforms, and attendees enjoy the game on picnic blankets under the stars and the lights of St. Peter's. One of the unique aspects of the event is that every dollar raised by food and program sales, player and team sponsorships, and ads in the program are donated to the The Todd J. Schwartz Memorial Fund.

For the first time since the 1998 season, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club will not be the Yawkey Baseball League Champions as they dropped thier first round series to the East Boston Bluefish 2 games to 1, ending on of the greatest runs every by anyteam at this level. The round 1 match up was very close as East Boston shout out Somerville in game 1, surrvied a must win game 2 at Trum and ended up falling one run short in game 3. The loss here ends a streak of 9 consecutive YBL Championships( 1999-2007 ), where the team won 27 consecutive playoff series both YBL records that could stand forever. The would like to thank all its fan, players and staff for all the work over the years and in the 2008 season. Most of all they want to thank the City of Somerville and Tony Alibrandi for being increidble partners this year.

2B - Kevin White Announces His RetirementAfter leading the team to its 10th Yawkey Baseball League Championship in 2007, Kevin White retired from the YBL this past week and the team announced that no one would ever wear the #12 again. Kevin who was the team captain was a 5 time all star, who holds a unique distincition of being named Most Valueable of the Regular Season(2002), Playoffs(2003) and of the Fenway Park All Star Game(1996). Kevin was also voted a winner of 7 consecutive Gold Gloves(2001-2007) for his tremendous defense and won the 2003 Silver Slugger Awards as the best offensive second basebaseman in the league. The future YBL Hall of Famer retires as maybe the best second baseman in the leagues history and as the all time YBL leader in hit by pitches. The team will miss his leadership and passion for the game, but wish him the best in his life after baseball.

David Sprague Inducted into Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame Class of 2008At the upcoming Yawkey Baseball League Awards Dinner at the IBEW Hall in Dorchester, Somerville Alibrandis outfielder David Sprague will be inducted into the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame. A recognition that is long overdue, David becomes the 9th member of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club to join the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame. David was a member of 3 Yawkey Baseball League All Star Teams, highlighted by being named the Co-MVP of the 1998 at Fenway Park( 3-3, 2B, 3b ) and was a member of 3 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Teams.

The Somerville Alibranids Baseball Club are ready to start the season this Friday night at Trum Field. The Yawkey Baseball League just announced its 2008 schedule. Please check the YBL site for updates.

In a very well played 2007 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the fifth seeded Brighton Brewers 4 games to 1 in dramatic fashion to earn their 10 Yawkey Baseball League Championship. The Somerville Alibrandis took the first 3 games of the series, but the Brewers battled and with only 3 hits, 2 of which were home runs were able to take game 4 to keep the series alive. The Brewers were leading game 5 by a score of 6-2 at Trum Field going into the 6th inning when Alibrandis batters were able to score 2 runs in the 6th cutting the lead in half and then 3 runs came across in the 7th inning, highlighted by Sal Mendonca's game winning single by the drawn in infield scoring 2 runs to give the Alibrandis team a wallkoff 7-6 victory and the 2007 Yawkey Baseball League Title for the 9th season in a row. Marc DesRoches and Frank "the Tank" McPhearson were named co MVP''s of the Finals. The Alibrandis Club finished with a total record of 38-7-1( 28-5-1 Regular Season and 10-2 Postseason ).

The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has been honored with awards that both have recognized the team and its players in recognition of the 2007 YBL Championship Season this past summer. For the 9th consecutive season and the 10th time in 11 seasons, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club was honored by the BoSox Club at a luncheon held at the Quincy Marriott this past September. On hand the receive the award were Team President David Treska, Team Manager Mike Powers, Team Sponsor Tony Alibrandis of Alibrandis Barber Shop, Kevin White and Sal Mandonca. The BoSox Club is the oldest official fan club in Major League Baseball and promotes the game at all levels while assisting the Boston Red Sox in community and charitable endeavors. In 1967, Red Sox officials and fans organized the BoSox Club. Today, with over 800 members, it is the largest and oldest official fan club of its type in all of major league baseball. The BoSox Club promotes baseball at all levels and assists the Boston Red Sox in community and charitable endeavors. The Somerville team was honored to be recognized by the BoSox Club. "This event has been something that we have been very lucky to have taken part in each year," said Alibrandis Team President David Treska. The Yawkey Baseball League of Boston wrapped up the 2007 season when it held its annual voting for their postseason awards and Somerville Alibranids Baseball Club took home a few awards that were voted on by the 17 mangers that make up the league. Marc DesRoches took home the Most Valueable Pitcher of the Year Award for the 1st time in career. Marc ranked among the best pitchers in the league going 7-1 with save, a 1.24 earned run average and he struck out 59 batters. The highlight of his season was a perfect game against the Brighton Braves. Derek Bates won the league's Comeback Player of the Year Award. Derek sucessfully rehabed his arm after surgery, then was able to put up a impressive season going 3-0 in 7 games, striking out 34 in 21.1 innings pitched. The next set of awards the Yawkey Baseball League announced were the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Teams. The Gold Glove team is made up of the players that the league deems to be the best defensive players at their positions and the Silver Sluggers are the best offensive players at their positions. Two members of the Somerville team earned the top defensive award from the YBL, DesRoches won his 6th at third base( 2001-2003, 2006-2007 ) and Kevin White won a record 7th consecutive award as the best defensive second baseman( 2001-2007 ). Somerville also had three members join the Silver Slugger team, DesRoches won his 7th at third base( 2000-2003, 2005-2007 ), David Scioli won his 5th at shortstop( 2002-2005, 2007 ) and a in his two years in the league Justin Crisafulli won the award as the top offensive designated hitter in the YBL. The last award the YBL named was Franchise of the Year which was awarded to the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club for the second consecutive season. The team earned this award based best ever regular season, winning its 11th consecutive conference title and making its 12th playoff appearance. The local club then went into the postseason earning its 10th Yawkey Baseball League Championship. “This type of an award is a great recognition of the success of our team and to the city of Somerville,” said Treska. “We are honored that the rest of the YBL would vote us this award. It takes so many people to accomplish what we have and this honor is a testament to all of the players, coaches, boosters and supporters who have devoted so much time and support to help this team every season”.

1st Annual Alibrandis Alumni Game, Old Timers Take it 13-10.
The first of the team hopes is many, Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Alumni Softball Game took place early in October. The game featured a team made up of current members of the team against a team comprised of retired former players. The Alumni team defeated the 2007 YBL Champs in 9 innings 13-10 to take the innagural game. After the game the team went back to Joe Sent Me on Mass Ave in Cambridge where the team viewed the video of Game 5 of the 2007 YBLCS to put an official wrap up on the season. Please click on the headline link for Joe Sent Me and support them for all of the help they provided with this event.

League President Dave McKay has informed all the members of the Yawkey Baseball League that long time Comminssioner Dan Tarpey has passed away. Here is what Dave wrote:

It is with deep regret and sadness that I inform you of the passing of the Father of the Thomas A. Yawkey Baseball League of Boston.
Commissioner Dan Tarpey entered into rest this morning at 1:30AM.
Dan was surrounded by his entire family at his son Dan's Residence in Cohasset, MA. He is at peace now and his suffering is over.
Our good friend did so much to nurture us as sportsman in the Yawkey League over the years. I am so proud to have been a friend of his and know how much he loved all of you and your players.
Complete details about Dan's wake and funeral will be published on the YBL Webpage: www.yawkeybaseball.com
Please pass this information along to your players and friends of the League who knew our buddy Big Dan. We love you Dan and will miss you so much!
Respectfully,
David J. McKay

For the ninth consecutive year and the tenth time in the past eleven seasons, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club will be honored by the BoSox Club, the official booster club of the Boston Red Sox as they will be guests at the BoSox Club's annual Amateur Baseball Awards Luncheon tomorrow at the Newton Marriott to honor the achievement of the teams 2007 Yawkey Baseball League Championship. The event annually recognizes and honors the top baseball and softball teams from across New England, as well as the announcement and the BoSox Club Man of the Year for 2007.

It is an event that we have been honored to attend over the years and something that we have really enjoyed.", said Alibrandis Team President David Treska. "The BoSox Club does a great job supporting baseball and for all the players and staff on our team, we thank them for this recognition."

The 2007 Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team went 38-7-1 as they started the season winning their first 17 games in a row and went 10-2 in the postseason. The local nine captured their 11th consecutive Stewart Conference Championship on their way to the a Yawkey Baseball League record 10th Championship..

In 1967, Red Sox officials and fans organized the BoSox Club. Today it is the largest and oldest official fan club of its type in all of major league baseball. Former Red Sox player Dom DiMaggio was the Club's first president, while former broadcaster Ken Coleman is a charter member. The BoSox Club promotes baseball at all levels and assists the Boston Red Sox in community and charitable endeavors.

Every September, the BoSox Club honors championship teams with a special trophy at this luncheon. Other leagues being recognized include the Massachusetts American Legion, Massachusetts Babe Ruth League, Cape Cod League, Division I College Baseball, Division 1 High School Baseball, Division I College Women's Softball and Division I High School Girls' Softball teams, Intercity Baseball League, Massachusetts Little League, and the Boston Park League.

Mike Rigazio, a Somerville Alibrandis Baseball player from 2006-2007, signed a professional contract this past summer with the Charlotte County Red Fish in Port Charlotte, FL in the South Coast League. Mike joined the team in July and just finished his first season, with the Red Fish who are managed by former Detroit Tigers All-Star Cecil Fielder. To learn more about the Red Fish and the SCL please click on the headline link.

In impressive fasion the Somerville Alibrandis defeated the South Boston Saints 3 games to none to advance to to the finals of the Yawkey Baseball League for the 10th time and 9th season in a row. Alibrandis pitching was the story in the series as they did not allow a run in any of the games. Derek Bates, Jon Morse and Scott Rodgers each won a game in the series sweep. South Boston season ends with an overall record of 22-18. They ended the regular season as the 7th seed team and advanced to round 2 with an impressive upset of the the #2 seeded Revere Rockies.

This past June at the Yawkey Baseball League Awards Dinner at the IBEW Hall in Dorchester, Somerville Alibrandis pitcher Shawn Nadeau was inducted into the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame. Shawn became the 8th member of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club to join the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame. Upon Shawn's retirement he held the record for Somerville Alibrandis team victories. To recognize his tremendous career the team had his uniform #23 retired soon after he played his last game in the Yawkey Baseball League. Shawn was a member of 5 Yawkey Baseball League All Star Teams, starting 2 games at Fenway Park and was a member of 8 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Teams.

Longtime Boston Park League Umpire in Chief Joe Driscoll passed away suddenly on April 14th as he prepared to work a game at Tufts University. Joe was a very well respected umpire working many local leagues as well as many collegete games highlighted by working 3 NCAA College World Series. Most noteable Roger Clemens final game while at the University of Texas. Joe is survived by his wife Cindy, and children Todd, Kimberly, and Matthew. Our teams thought and prayers and with them in dealing with their loss.
A wake will be held on Wednesday, April 18th from 3pm -7pm at Sweeney Memorial Funeral Home(66 Concord Road, Billerica, MA 01821, Phone Number: (978) 667-9934), and the funeral will be held at 9 am on Thursday, April 19th at Saint Theresa of Lisieux Parish(466 Boston Road Billerica, MA 01821). The headline link will direct you to a story in the Boston Herald about Joe, wirtten by Steve Buckley.

Alibrandis Earns Postseason Awards
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has been honored with awards that both have recognized the team and its players in recognition of the 2006 YBL Championship Season this past summer. For the 8th consecutive season and the 9th time in 10 seasons, the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club was honored by the BoSox Club at a luncheon held at the Quincy Marriott on September 21st. On hand the receive the award wert Team President David Treska, Team Manager Mike Powers, Team Sponsor Tony Alibrandis of Alibrandis Barber Shop, Marc DesRoches, Tom McDonough, Mike Rigazzio, Steve Szathmary, Sal Mandonca and Mike Sadler. The BoSox Club is the oldest official fan club in Major League Baseball and promotes the game at all levels while assisting the Boston Red Sox in community and charitable endeavors. In 1967, Red Sox officials and fans organized the BoSox Club. Today, with over 800 members, it is the largest and oldest official fan club of its type in all of major league baseball. The BoSox Club promotes baseball at all levels and assists the Boston Red Sox in community and charitable endeavors. The Somerville team was honored to be recognized by the BoSox Club and this year had the added benefit of being presented their trophy by John Harrington. Harrington, was the former CEO of the Boston Red Sox and the current President / Trustee of the Yawkey Foundation. "This event has been something that we have been very lucky to have taken part in each year," said Alibrandis Team President David Treska. "and to have Mr. Harrington be there to present us our award was quite a thrill for us as the trust as done so much for our league and baseball in New England".

The Yawkey Baseball League of Boston this past week wrapped up the 2006 season when it held its annual voting for their postseason awards and Somerville Alibranids Baseball Club took home a few awards that were voted on by the 17 mangers that make up the league. Marc DesRoches took home the Most Valuable Player Award for the 3rd time in 5 seasons( 2002, 2004, 2006 ). DesRoches won the award in a landslide vote as he was the first known player to win the YBL's Triple Crown, leading the league in the three major offensive categories of bating average( .436 ), home runs( 4) and runs batted in( 29 ). On top of the historic season at the bat he also was among the best pitchers in the league going 5-1 with 2 saves, a 0.51 earned run average and he struck out 57 batters in 41.1 innings pitched. Since the Yawkey Baseball League started to vote for this award in 2002 a member of the Alibrandis Team has won the award in each season, DesRoches a three time winner, Kevin White won the award in 2003 and David Scioli in 2005. DesRoches was also named co-Most Valuable Player of the postseason along with infielder Bernie Driscoll. DesRoches continued his regular season batting with a .389 average while hitting 2 home runs and driving in 10 to go along 3-0 on the hill with a 0.36 ERA and 17K's. Driscoll lead the team in the postseason in hitting posting a .419 average and lead the team in extra base hits with 6 including a home run and 8 runs batted in with 6 of those RBIs coming in the finals series where Somerville defeated the Medford Maddogs 4 games to 1.

The next set of awards the Yawkey Baseball League announced were the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Teams. The Gold Glove team is made up of the players that the league deems to be the best defensive players at their positions and the Silver Sluggers are the best offensive players at their positions. Two members of the Somerville team earned the top defensive award from the YBL, DesRoches won his 5th at third base( 2001-2003, 2006 ) and Kevin White won a record 6th consecutive award as the best defensive second baseman( 2001-2006 ). Somerville also had two members join the Silver Slugger team, DesRoches triple crown season help him win his 6th at third base( 2000-2003, 2005-2006 ) and a YBL rookie Justin Crisafulli won the award as the top offensive designated hitter in a season where he posted a .406 average with 1 home run and 16 RBI's.

The local team did come close in a few more individual awards but were defeated in the final voting, Mike Powers who lead the team to an YBL best 25-7 regular season record came in second in Manager of the Year voting. Pitcher Jon Morse, who won the 2006 YBL earned run average title with a 1.19 came in second for the YBL's Pitcher of the Year Award.

The last award the YBL named was a new one to be given out, and one that is a team award, Franchise of the Year which was awarded to the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club. The team earned this award based on the 25-7 regular season, winning its 10th consecutive conference title and making its 11th playoff appearance. The local club then went 10-2 in the postseason in earning its 9th Yawkey Baseball League Championship. This type of an award is a great recognition of the success of our team and to the city of Somerville, said Treska. We are honored that the rest of the YBL would vote us this award. It takes so many people to accomplish what we have and this honor is a testament to all of the players, coaches, boosters and supporters who have devoted so much time and support to help this team every season.

Support Jim Plunkett Over the Summer of 2007
The Alibrandis Baseball Club is proud to promote and support friend of the team Jim Plunkett. Jim preforms show all year long and if you click on the headline link you can get his schedule information. The next time Jim is in Somerville he will be at the On the Hill Tavern on May 4th and please make every effort to support Jim and enjoy the show. For those who do not know who he is, Jim is just a man of simple songs who likes to have fun. He plays what he likes... hoping that you'd like it too. He's been performing in the New England area for decades from Cape Cod to Boston and through out the surrounding towns. He'll get you to sing and his DJ will get you to dance. The shows is 21+ and tickets or cover charges are charged, please check the website out for information. Jim has been performing shows for the team over the years and has been a tremendous supporter of the Somerville Highlander Alumni / Alibrandis Baseball Team. The team showed its appreciation by inducting Jim into the team Hall of Fame.

The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club won the 2006 Yawkey Baseball League Championship by defeating the Medford Maddogs 4 games to 1. The clincher was a 7-1 win at Fallon Field. This Championship marks the 8th consecutive YBL title and the 9th in 10 seasons.

In a very tough series, and one much closer then the 3 game sweep would show the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club have advanced to the 2006 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series. Revere played the local nine close with the scores of the 3 games 2-1, 4-2 and 2-1. The series opener was hard fought and the Rockies almost stole game 1, but thanks to a walk off single in the bottom of the seventh by catcher Frank "the Tank" McPherson they won game one and never trailed again the series.
The win puts the team in the finals for the 9th time with the last 8 coming in consecutive years. They wait to see who the finals match up will be between the #3 seed Medford Maddogs or the #4 West Roxbury Devils. Medford currently holds a 2-0 series lead and if they do advance it would be a unique finals with the 2 neighbors doing battle for the 2006 Championship.

Alibrandis Wins Round 1 Series 3-1 over Brighton Brewers
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club after earning the #1 overall seed in the 2006 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs defeated a tough #8 Seed Brighton Brewers 3 games to 2. This was a rematch of last years dramatic 5 game semi-final series that Somerville won 3 games to 2 in extra innings. The Brewers came out and immediatly stole home field advantage dominating the local guys with a 6-0 victory. Somerville was able to bounch back the next day and earn the split at home with a convincing 7-1 win and never looked back as they won the next 2 games on the road, 4-1 and 6-3 to win the series and advance to round 2 where they will take on the #7 Revere Rockies who upset the Tarpey Conference Champions and #2 seeded East Boston Bombers.

YBL Names 4 Somerville players for US Military All Star Game
This June 9th at Adams Field in Quincy the Yawkey Baseball League is hosting a team made up of United States Service Men who make up the US Military All Star Baseball Team. After the voting of players was complete the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club was honored with selection of 4 players, David Scioli(ss), Kevin White(2b), Marc DesRoches(3b) and Steve Szathmary(p). The YBL All Stars will also be lead by the Alibrandis coaches Mike Powers and David Treska. For more information go to the YBL webiste or click on the headline link to go to the US Military All Stars website.

Chris Wright - Yawkey Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2006
Chris Wright is to be inducted into the Yawkey Baseball Legue Hall of Fame at the umpcoming Awards Banquet on June 24th. Wright completed a very impressive career after the 2004 season and was a member of 7 YBL Championships and owns most team offensive records. The Banquet will be held at the IBEW Hall in Dorchester at 7pm.

David Scioli wins 2005 YBL Most Valuable Player Award
Alibrandis shortstop David Scioli has been voted the Yawkey Baseball Leagues Most Valuable Player for the 2005 Season. This is the first time that Scioli has earned the award but it marks the fourth consecutive season that a member of the team from Somerville has won the award. Marc DesRoches has won the award in 2002 and 2004 and Kevin White won the award in 2003. Scioli led the league in hits( 47 ), home runs( 4 ) and slugging percentage( .696 ) while finishing second in batting average( .461 ).

YBL Announce 2005 Gold Glove and Silver Sluggers
The Yawkey Baseball League announced the 2005 Gold Glove and Silver Slugger teams. The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club had 2 members win gold gloves and 3 members win silver bats. Kevin White earned his 5th Gold Glove as the best defensive secondbaseman in the league( 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 ) and Tom McDonough won his second gold glove in as many seasaon as the leagues best defensive outfielder.
As for Silver Sluggers league MVP David Scioli was named as the top hitting shortstop for the fourth consecutive season. After a season off of getting the award Marc DesRoches was named as the top third baseman with the stick for the fifth time. A newcomer to the silver bat team is outfilder Tom McDonough winning his first award.

The 2005 Yawkey Baseball League Champion Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club is hosting a informal gathering for members of the team and thier friends and famiies at the world famous Cask n Flagon on Tuesday night November 8th at 7:00pm. The team has secured the Outfield section of the Cask for for a showing of the Comcast television coverage of game 7 of the Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series. The viewing of the tape will begin at 7:30pm. For those who attend there will be a cash bar and you are free to order food off the menu. Guest must be 21+. For directions to the Cask n' Flagon please click on the headline link that will direct you to their website. We look forward to seeing as many of you there as possible.

Somerville Alibrandis Club Win 2005 YBL Championship !!!!!!
In one of the best Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series ever the Somerville Alibrandis team defeated the Al Thomas Atletics 4 games to 3. The series went back and forth, with Al Thomas jumping out to a 2-0 series lead and then with Somerville winning games 3, 4 and 5 to take the series 3-2. Game 6 was won by Al Thomas setting up the game 7 game for the 2005 Championship. The victory over Al Thomas gives the Somerville team its 7th consecutive Yawkey Baseball League crown and its 8th in 9 seasons. In the desicive game 7 Steve Sztahmary pitched a complete game, holding the Althetics to 1 run earning the win. David Scioli drove in the go ahead run in the 6th and was named the Most Valeuable Player of the 2005 YBLCS.

Kevin Doyle to enter Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame
Kevin Doyle is considered to be the best catcher in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League and will be inducted into the YBL Hall of Fame at the annual banquet this June. He joined the Somerville team in 1997 after a few years and an all star appearance for the McKay Club. Kevin instantly made a huge impact to the teams defense and to the calling of the game adding the pitching staff. He went on to make the all star team that year and helped lead the team to its first YBL title. Kevin was a member of 3 more all star teams and was on 6 YBL Championship teams. Kevin won 4 Gold Gloved and 4 Silver Slugger Awards sweeping the catching awards every year that he was an active player. The team inducted him into its team hall of fame and retired his number 4 this season to honor him on this outstanding accomplishment.

1B - Chris Wright Announces his retirement
One of the best hitters in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League, Chris Wright offically called it a career. A fixture in the middle of the Somerville line up for over 10 seasons was a 4 time All Star, winning the games Most Valueable Player Award, and was honored as the only player in YBL History to win Silver Slugger Awards at 3 different positions( LF, SS, 1B ). His best game was a 3 Home Run performance where he provided all the teams runs in a playoff game at Trum versus the Brighton Mariners. The team retired his number 3 the day he retired and he is a lock to be inducted into the Yawkey Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

Alibrandis Open at #23 in NSPBA Pre-Season Poll
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club earned the #23 National Ranking in the National Semi-Professional Baseball Association pre season rankings. Alibrandis ened the 2004 Year at 27 and with the improvements made in the offseason the team has jumped up a few spots. The team hopes to crack the top 10 for the first time in team history in 2005 as they attempt to win another YBL Championship.

C - Kevin Doyle Announces his Retirement
Kevin Doyle has announced his retirement from playing after injuries kept him out of the 2004 season. Kevin is considered to be the best cather in the history of the Yawkey Baseball League. He joined the Somerville team in 1997 after a few years and an all star appearance for the McKay Club. Kevin instally made a huge impact to the teams defense and to the calling of the game adding the pitching staff. He went on to make the all star team that year and helped lead the team to its first YBL title. Kevin was a member of 3 more all star teams and was on 6 YBL Championship teams.

Alibrandis 2nd Best Sports Story in 2004
For the 3rd year in a row the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball team has made the top 10 of the Somerville Journals best sports stories of the 2004 season. The Alibrandis team has ended the year as the number 2 story and is once again the top non-high school sports related story of the year.

Alibrandis End Year as NSPBA 27th in the United States
The 2004 Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club for the 4th season in a row the ended the season nationally ranked by the National Semi-Professional Baseball Association. The team ended the year with a final ranking of 27. The local team has won 6 consecutive YBL Championships which has gotten the team the attention by the NSPBA.
The NSPBA is a online website that promotes amateur baseball across the country.

Alibranids Announce Team Hall of Famers for 2005
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team announced its 2005 class of members to the team Hall of Fame this week. Kevin Doyle, Brian Kosta and Ted DesRoches were all inducted to the Hall of Fame. The team Hall of Fame started in 2001 when team sponsor Tony Alibrandi was honored at the first nominee. They join the 10 current members, Tony Alibrandi, Al Chute, David Sprague, Rich Iandoli, Jim Plunkett, Joe Lotti, Jim Schaefer, Erik Weston, Chris Banda and Joe Stanton. The Team Hall of Fame was started to honor former players, coaches or people who have made an improtant contribution to the teams sucesses. Congratulations to Kevin, Brian and Teddy on the honor.

C - Ted DesRoches Announces his Retirement
Ted DesRoches has hung up his gear and ended his playing days as a member of the Somerville Alibrandis team. Ted joined the team in 1997 and was a member of 7 YBL Championships. He was also a member of the 2000 All Star Team as a member of the coaching staff at Fenway Park. He was a incredible asset ot the team providing days off and a solid receiver for the pitching staff. His ability to hit off the bench gave the team a reliable left handed hitter as an option at all times.

Alibranids Win 7th Yawkey Baseball League Championship!!!!!
For the 6th year in a row and the 7th time in 8 seasons the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has won the Championship Series of the Yawkey Baseball League. They earned the title defeating the 2nd seeded South Boston Saints 4 games to 1. This is the 3rd time that Alibrandis had defeated the South Boston Saints in the Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series( 1999, 4-0; 2002, 4-0; 2004, 4-1 ). Pitchers Derek Bates and Shawn Nadeau combined for the victory in game 5 of the series and Rookie of the Year canidate Mike Feetham was named YBLCS Most Valueable Player. Feetham was 12-18 in the YBLCS against South Boston, hitting for the cycle in game 4 and driving in 8 runs. The Somerville Alibrandis team ends the season with an overall record of 37-5-1( 27-4-1 Regular Season and 10-1 Playoffs ).

Marc DesRoches wins 2004 YBL MVP Award
Alibrandis 3B/P has been voted the Yawkey Baseball Leagues Most Valueable Player for the 2004 Season. This is the second time that Marc has won the award( 2002 ) and the the third year in a row that a member of the Somerville Alibradnis Baseball team has be so honored( Kevin White - 2003 ).

Derek Bates wins 2004 YBL Pitcher of Year Award
Derek Bates has won this thrid consecutive Yawkey Baseball League Pitcher of the Year Award( 2002, 2003 & 2004 ). Derek went 8-2 leading the league in wins, posted a 1.38 ERA and a league leading 103 strike outs in the regular season. Derek also helped lead the team to its 7th YBL title going 4-0 in the postseason and was the winning pitcher in the clincer versus South Boston.

YBL Announce 2004 Gold Glove Award Winners
The Yawkey Baseball League announced the 2004 Gold Glove team and 3 members of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club were selected to the team. Kevin White earned his 4th Gold Glove as the best defensive secondbaseman in the league( 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004 ). Two Alibranids players earned their first ever Gold Glove Awards centerfielder Tom McDonough and catcher Frank McPherson. With the naming of Mcdonough to the Gold Glove team marks the first time that an Alibrandis players playing the outfield has earned such an award.
McPhearsons award marks the forth time in five years that Alibrandis has had the best defensive catcher in the YBL. Kevin Doyle won the award in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

YBL Announce 2004 Silver Slugger Award Winners
The Yawkey Baseball League announced the 2004 Silver Slugger team and 2 members of the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club were selected to the team. Chris Wright and David Scioli were named to the Silver Slugger team, each for their third time. Wright in being named to the team sets him apart in YBL history as the only player win the award at three different positions. In 2000 Wright won as a left fielder, in 2001 won as a shortstop and this season winning the award at first base. Shortstop David Scioli has now won the award in 2002, 2003 and 2004. Scioli led the league in doubles( 18 ) and slugging percentage( .752 ) and finished second in the YBL with 5 Home Runs.

OF/P - Brian Kosta announces retirement
Three.-time YBL All Star Brian Kosta after taking the 2004 season off, had made it official and announced his retirement as a player in the YBL. Brian has been a key member of the team since he joined the team in 1992 and was a member of 6 YBL Championship Teams

YBL Ump Walter Bentson Honored by Cape Cod Baseball League
Long time Yawkey Baseball League Umpire and current president of the Boston Park League, Walter Bentson has been named the first ever recipient of the Cape Cod Baseball League's Curley Clement Umpire of the Year Award. The award is named for Clement who has worked as a Cape League umpire for four decades and was inducted into the CCBL Hall of Fame in 2002. He worked 16 NCAA Regionals, several ECAC Division I Baseball Championships and two College World Series during his career. His final Cape League appearance was working home plate at the 2000 CCBL All-Star.
Twenty-five ECAC umpires, along with spouses, friends, and children paid tribute to Bentson on Sunday, August 8. Despite an illness, Walter has worked behind the plate in more than 175 games this year at the college, junior college, high school, and top summer league levels. Bentson, a Boston native, serves on the College Baseball Umpires Association (CBUA)/New England Board of Directors and is President of the Boston Park League, the oldest amateur baseball league in the country. All the current and past members want to extend their congratulations to Walter on this tremendous honor. Click on the headline link for the complete story from the Cape Cod Baseball League webiste.

BoSox Club to Honor 2004 YBL Champions
The BoSox Club, the Official Boster Club of the Boston Red Sox, honored the 2004 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club at its annual Awards Luncheon, this past September 22nd at the Newton Boston Marriott. The BoSox Luncheon is an annual event that the BoSox Club runs to honor all the Champions from all of the area amatuer local baseball leagues as well as Little League, American Legion, High School and College teams from the state. This was the 7th time in 8 years and the 6th year in a row that the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team have been invited to attend this very speical event. Team President David Treska, Sponsor Tony Alibrandi, Manager Mike Powers and player Jevon Moxley were in attendance for the event and were presented with the Championship Trophy.

The Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the 5th seeded Al Thomas Athletics in round 2 of the 2004 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs 3 games to none. Alibrandis now advance to the YBL Championship Series for the 6th consecutive season in a row. With the series victory the Alibrandis team improves their overall record to 33-4-1. The Al Thomas had another solid season making the playoffs for the 14th time in 15 season and end the seaosn with an overall record to 21-18-1.

The Alibrandis Baseball Team swept the Brookline Dodgers out of the playoffs and advance to Round 2 of the 2004 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs. The series dragged out over 9 days, due to the rain that has it the Boston area. With the sweep Alibrandis improves its overall season record to 30-4-1 and await to see who they face in round 2 as the YBL re-seeds the teams. They will match up with the lowest seeded team to advance, depending on the outcome it can be any of 3 teams. The 4th seeded McKay Club, the 5th seeded Al Thomas Club or the 7th seeded Brighton Black Sox. For updated please check back to this site or at yawkeybaseball.com

Alibrandis prepare for 2004 YBL Postseason
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club has qualified for postseaon play in the upcoming Yawket Baseball League Championships. The team completed the 2004 regular season with a 27-4-1 record, which is the best record in team history and a Yawkey Baseball League best, securing the team the #1 seed in the playoffs securing home field advantage through out the tournament. This marks the 8th consecutive season that the Alibrandis team will enter the Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs as the top seeded team and are looking to win its 6th consecutive YBL title and its 7th League Championship overall. There are 3 rounds of play in the YBL Playoffs. The first 2 rounds are best of 5 series and after round 1 the league re-seeds the teams for the round 2 match ups. The Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series is a best of 7 series.

Former Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club player Kevin Brower was drafted in the recent MLB draft. Kevin Brower pitched for the Alibrandis Baseball Club during the 1998 season. After leaving the team he went on to play college baseball at North Carolina and played summer baseball in the Cape Cod League. Kevin Brower was selected in the 33rd round of the 2004 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Kevin Brower was taken by the Detroit Tigers with the 973rd overall pick. Kevin Brower just wrapped up his college career at North Carolina with 105 career appearances, the fourth-most in programs history. He posted a career record of 10-8 with four saves and a 4.33 earned run average. During his senior season at the University of North Carlonia he was 1-1 with a 3.57 ERA in 22 appearances. In 2003, Brower led the staff with 33 games pitched. He recorded a career best at UNC ERA of 2.28 in 2002. The Someville Alibranids Club congratulates Kevin and wishes the best of Luck in his professional career.

Alibrandis Win 2004 Season Opener
This past Sunday the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club opened its 2004 season in impressive fashion defeating the Revere Rockies 11-1. The team picked up where it left off last year playing a strong game in all phases of the game to help earn their first victory of the 2004 Yawkey Baseball League season.
Derek Bates, the two-time defending YBL Cy Young, got the start in the opener. Bates dominated the Rockies, allowing only one base runner in the first 3 innings via a hit by pitch and went three and two-thirds before allowing a base hit. In his five innings of work Bates, allowed one run, struck out the side three times( 1st, 3rd and 5th ) and finished with 10 Ks on the game. Scott Rodgers pitched a one, two, three 6th inning and Marc DesRoches stuck out the side to close out the 7th. Bates( 1-0, 5IP, 10K, 1ER, 0BB, 1HBP ) performance earned him the week 1, MyMoneyInc.com Alibrandis Pitcher of the Week.
Alibrandis offense pounded out 17 hits as every starter in the game had at least 1 hit. The 11 run output was highlighted by the DesRoches brothers, Marc DesRoches( 3-4, 2-2B, 3-RBI ) and Ted DesRoches( 2-3, RBI ) combined for 5 hits and 4 RBIs. Marc DesRoches earned the week 1, Moore Lumber Alibrandis Hitter of the Week Honors.
Alibrandis Baseball plays this Saturday at 5pm at Tufts University versus conference rival the Brighton Black Sox and on Monday they travel to McConnell Park in Savin Hill to take on the Savin Hill Hornets.

Chris Banda Inducted into YBL Hall of Fame
Chris Banda for his years of service for the Somerville Highlander / Alibrandis Baseball Team has been inducted into the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame. Banda has been part of the team for over 10 seasons as productive player and a member of the coaching staff. His tireless efforts in helping the team on and off the field make him a standout in the teams history. Banda joins Tony Alibrandi, Erik Weston, Joe Lotti and Jim Schaefer as Alibrandis members to be inducted into the YBL Hall of Fame. The induction will take place at the YBL Banquet on June 12th at the IBEW Hall in Dorchester.

Somerville Little League to Honor Alibrandis Baseball
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club's President David Treska, Manager Mike Powers and Sponsor Tony Alibarandi will be honored by the Somerville Little League at their Opening Day Ceremonies. The Opening Day Event is April 17th, 10:00AM and will be held at Conway Park when the Little League kicks off its 2004 season with games featuring teams from all across the city of Somerville.

Alibrandis Announce the Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week
Alibrandis is pleased to announce that Moore Lumber will return as the sponsor of the Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week. Moore Lumber will sponsor the award evey week of the regular and post season. Also there will be an Moore Lumber Hitter of the Year. Please click on the link to learn more about Moore Lumber and support our award sponsor.

Alibrandis Announce the MyMoneyInc.com Pitcher of the Week
Alibrandis announces that MyMoneyInc.com will return as the sponsor of the MyMoneyInc.com Pitcher of the Week. MyMoneyInc.com will sponsor the award evey week of the regular and post season. Also there will be an MyMoneyInc.com Pitcher of the Year. Please click on the link to learn more about MyMoneyInc.com and support our newest award sponsor.

YBL at Fenway for 2004 All Star Game
The Yawkey Baseball League of Boston has been granted an invitation once again by the Boston Red Sox to conduct its annual League All Star Game at Fenway Park. The 2003 game will be held on Wednesday - June 30th at the traditional 10AM start time. The Bill Stewart Conference All Stars will confront the Dan Tarpey Conference All Stars once again. The Boston Park League will cap the day off at 2PM with an inter league All Star game with the Cranberry League. Tickets will be available at the Red Sox Gate B Entrance for $5 per adult. Kids under 12 will be admitted free.

"This is the 11th Anniversary Game to be held at Fabled Fenway," said a very proud League President, Dave McKay. "The YBL is so fortunate to be asked by the Red Sox to continue the traditions started during the Harrington Administration of the franchise," McKay added. McKay concluded his comments by saying, "Once again the new owners have demonstrated their ability to respect Fenway Tradition and make things more fun and accessible at the Old Ball Yard."

"Our deep gratitude is expressed to John Henry & his partners for making Fenway available to two of the top amateur baseball programs in the USA." McKay also expressed his gratitude to Team President, Larry Luccino & Community Relations Director, Ron Burton for working out the logistics of the event.

2004 Award Sponsors Named
The Alibrandis Baseball Team is proud to announce that Moore Lumber and MyMoneyInc.com are returning for a second season as the sponsors of the teams Hitter of the Weeek and Pitcher of the Week. The team is adding a new award for the 2004, the 10th Player Award. This will be sponsored by On the Hill Tavern. On the Hill Tavern is newly opened pub in Somerville and is located across the street from Trum Field at 499 Broadway. The team is excited about its parntnerships with all 3 supporters of our team.

Alibrandis start season #15 in 2004 Preseason Rankings
The National Semi-Pro Baseball Association has come out with its preseason poll for the 2004 season and Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club earned the #15 ranking. This is the 3rd year in a row that the Local team has been in the NSPBA's preseason top 25. Last season Alibrandis started the season with its highest ranking of 11 and ended the year 20th. The National Semi-Pro Baseball Assocaition is an online magazine that ranks baseball teams across the United States and is run by Tim Turpin, president/owner of the Evansville Outlaws. The Yawkey Baseball League also got National attention as they have been ranked the 9th best Semi-Pro League in the United States.

Alibrandis Baseball #1 Sports Story in 2003
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club topped the list of sports stories for 2003 in the Somerville Journal. Click on the headline link to read the story. This is the first time that the team has been the top story and are very honored to have been named as such by the staff of the Somerville Journal. All the members of the team from the coaches, players and sponsors wish to thank the Somerville Journal for this tremendous honor.
The team also wants to congratulate manager Mike Powers for being named in the year end top stories as well. Powers as well as being the coach of Alibrandis, he was also named the Somerville High School Baseball coach. For that and his achievement in his first season Powers he earned an Honorable Mention for 2003 in the year end pool.

Alibrandis Baseball Announce 2004 Team Hall of Famers
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team announced its 2004 class of members to the team Hall of Fame this week. Chris Banda and Joe Stanton both were inducted to the Hall of Fame. The team Hall of Fame started in 2001 when team sponsor Tony Alibrandi was honored at the first nominee. They join the 8 current members, Tony Alibrandi, Al Chute, David Sprague, Rich Iandoli, Jim Plunkett, Joe Lotti, Jim Schaefer and Erik Weston. The Team Hall of Fame was started to honor former players, coaches or people who have made an improtant contribution to the teams sucesses. Congratulations to both Chris and Joe on the honor.

Alibrandis Off-Season News and Notes
YEAR END DINNER WRAP UP
The 2003 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club announced some post-season honors for members of the team at its end of year dinner last week. The team named its Moore Lumber Hitter of the Year and MyMoneyInc.com Pitcher of the Year at the dinner. The team also announced the Yawkey Baseball League awards nominations are for Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, Manager of the Year, Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Awards. Second baseman Kevin White was honored as the Moore Lumber Hitter of the Year, and Derek Bated was honored as the MyMoneyInc.com Pitcher of the Year. Both players earned the most weekly honors over the course of the 2003 season. White was the teams leading hitter and run scorer hitting out of the leadoff spot and was named to his 5th Yawkey Baseball League All Star team. Bates, the leagues defending Cy Young Award winner, set an YBL record for wins in a season with 15 and was named to his 4th Yawkey Baseball League All Star team. Alibrandis announced that White has been voted as a finalist for the 2003 Yawkey Baseball League Most Valuable Award and that Bates is again a finalist for the Yawkey Baseball League Cy Young Award. Mike Powers is once again a finalist for the Stewart Conference Manager of the Year, he has won the award three times( 1997, 2000, 2001 ). The team also announced the finalist for the YBLs Gold Glove Awards and Silver Slugger Awards. The Alibrandis Gold Glove nominees for the best defensive players at their respective positions are White( 2b ), Tom McDonough( cf ), David Scioli( ss ), Marc DesRoches( 3b ) and Kevin Doyle( c ). The Alibrandis silver slugger nominees for the best offensive players at their respective positions are White( 2b ), Scioli( ss ), DesRoches( 3b ), Chris Wright( 1b ) and David Treska( dh ). The voting will take place in the upcoming weeks at a Yawkey League meeting and the winners of these awards will be announced and honored at next years Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame dinner in June 2004.

ALIBRANDIS DAY
To celebrate the teams 15th anniversary the team will have its first "Alibrandis Day", Saturday June 19th 2004. The day will kick off with the team participating in YBL action. The game will be at 1:00 and will be the teams traditional "Turn back the Clock Day". The team will wear uniforms from the teams history. Following the YBL game the teams alumni will return to Trum Field for an Alumni Softball at 4:00p.m. It is a chance to see some of your old favorites back out on the diamond. The Alumni Game will be played on Trum's Softball Field. Following the completion of the alumni game there will be Home Run Derby. The Home Run Derby will be a team of 5 Alumni vesus 5 Current Players will battle for the team and individual title. A cookout will follow for all members of the current and alumni teams. Among the returning alumni appearing are Joe Lotti, Paul Wright, Paul O'Meara, Chris Banda and Erik Weston. If you are interested in participating please contact David Treska at treska@marketsoft.com.

Alibrandis Win 6th YBL Championship!!!!!!
The Somerville Alibrandis have completed another incredible season, winning the 2003 Yawkey Baseball League championship, defeating the East Boston Blue Sox, four games to none. It is the team's sixth title in seven seasons, winning the last five in a row.

The six Yawkey Baseball League championships gives them the most titles in league history, breaking a tie of five with the Al Thomas Athletics. Alibrandis swept the finals for the second consecutive year, and won its ninth straight finals games in a row.

In game one of the championship series at Trum Field, Derek Bates got the start against East Boston. Bates got off to a shaky start, giving up two runs in the first inning. East Boston pitcher Donnie King was able to hold off Alibrandis' bats, avoiding trouble in the first three innings to preserve the 2-0 lead. King allowed six hits in the first three innings, but was able to work out of each jam to keep Somerville off the board. In the top of the fourth, Alibrandis' bottom of the order got the scoring going. Frank McPherson led off the frame with a single to left field that East Boston's Steve Walsh misplayed, allowing the runner to advance to scoring position. Sal Mandonca plated McPherson with an RBI single, cutting the lead in half to end the scoring in the inning. One inning later, the team again was able to get the lead-off runner on when King walked Marc DesRoches, who scored on a triple by Tom McDonough.

That tied the game at two, when McPherson singled home McDonough to give Somerville its first lead of the game. That lead did not last for long, as the Blue Sox tied the game in the top of the sixth after Bates walked the lead-off batter and giving up a RBI triple to tie the score. Bates settled down and was able to strand the runner at third, striking out one and getting good defensive plays from second baseman Kevin White and Mandonca. The offensive again went right at it as they, for the third inning in a row, got their first man on base. Mike Powers worked a walk off King to get things going; Chris Banda replaced Powers as a pinch runner. DesRoches came up with a triple to plate Banda and put Alibrandis up in the game. David Scioli followed up DesRoches with a single with the all-important insurance run, making the score 5-3. Bates pitched a one-two-three seventh inning to earn his third win of the postseason and 15th overall in 2003.

In game two, the bats did not wait until later in the game to get going as they put up an early run in the bottom of the first, when White led off with a double and was followed by an RBI single by Kevin Doyle. In the second, Alibrandis got a run when David Treska struck out, but was able to advance when East Boston catcher Paul DeLeo made two errors on the play, allowing Treska to get all the way to second. Mandonca capitalized on that defensive mistake, singling to left and scoring Treska for the 2-0 lead. Those runs would be more then enough for starting pitcher Marc DesRoches, who cruised through the first three innings, retiring nine of the first 10 batters he faced. East Boston battled back and was able to push across a run in the fourth, but Somerville answered back in the fifth when Scioli again provided an insurance run with a sacrifice fly, scoring Doyle for what turned out to be the final score of 3-1. DesRoches then struck out the side in the sixth and let the defense do the work in the seventh to close the game out. Mandonca made a tremendous diving play to get the first out of the inning. After an East Boston single, DesRoches started a double play to Scioli at second and to Treska at first to close out the game.

The scene shifted from Trum Field to East Boston Stadium when the Blue Sox have been tough to beat all season. Manager Mike Powers called his number to pitch the game, and he was right in that move. Powers did allow an early run, but went on to retire 14 of 15 batters from the second to the sixth innings. The performance earned him the MyMoney.com Pitcher of the Week, going five and one-third with five strikeouts and no walks in his first win of the postseason. After trailing 1-0, Alibrandis got its scoring going in the second inning. Scioli singled and went to second on a wild pitch. McDonough singled home the run and took second on an error on the throw. McPherson reached on a base on balls and Mandonca beat out a potential double play to get in McDonough and put the team up for good in the game. The local nine pushed three across in the fourth. After one out, McPherson walked for the second time in the game and advanced to second on a passed ball. After another out, Mandonca collected a key hit to plate McPherson. Kevin White followed with a RBI double, Doyle extended the inning, and Chris Wright reached on an error that allowed White to score.

There was more in the sixth as the Somerville club put up a six-spot to put the game out of reach. Scott Rodgers led off the frame with a triple followed by a Mandonca base on balls. White drove in Rodgers with a single. Doyle played small ball as he sacrificed the runners to second and third. That strategy worked as both runners were driven home on the triple of Chris Wright, who was then plated by a single off the bat of DesRoches. McDonough delivered the final blow with the series' only home run to compete the inning. Powers ran out of gas and gave way to Chad Feetham, who worked out of the second and third jam in the sixth and getting the last five outs of the game to put Somerville Alibrandis up in the series three games to none.

With East Boston's back to the wall, Alibrandis wanted to get out early to make Eastie play catch up and never get going in the game. Kevin White sparked the team in the top of the first with a lead-off single. Doyle followed with a single, White advanced to third and Doyle took second on the throw when the East Boston missed the cutoff man. Wright got the third consecutive hit in a row, scoring White and Doyle for the quick 2-0 lead. DesRoches was hit by a pitch, pushing Wright into scoring position. Scioli was the fifth batter in a row to reach base, singling to center and getting Wright home for the 3-0 lead. Frank McPherson, the series' Most Valuable Player and the Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week, completed the scoring by tripling to right and scoring the fourth and fifth runs of the first. That took all the wind out of East Boston's sails as testament to the sloppy defensive in the second inning. Scioli tripled and scored on an error when McPherson reached on his ground ball to third. McPherson then advanced around the bases on passed balls and scored when Mandonca reached first on the shortstop's error, giving the defending champs a 7-0 lead.

Starting pitcher Scott Rodgers (2-0 in postseason ) took over from there as he never allowed East Boston to get going. He scattered five hits, struck out seven and allowed one earned run in the complete-game victory. East Boston was able to get single runs in the third and sixth, but fell short in the game. The final out was recorded on a tremendous play when Kevin White fielded a funny hop barehanded and tossed it over to Shawn Nadeau to get the out and the series victory.

Despite the finals sweep, the East Boston Blue Sox completed a very successful season in their second year in the Yawkey Baseball League, going from worst to first winning the Tarpey Conference championship. They end their season with a final record of 22-11-1.

The 2003 Somerville Alibrandis Club end their season with a final record of 32-7. As well as winning their record sixth YBL title, they also won their seventh consecutive conference championship. They are also the only YBL team to defend their title five years in a row.

BoSox Club to Honor YBL Champions
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club will be honored by the BoSox Club, the official booster club of the Boston Red Sox, for winning the 2003 Yawkey Baseball League Championship. The annual awards luncheon will take place September 25th at the Boston Newton Marriott. Team President David Treska, Field Manager Mike Powers team sponsor Tony Alibrandi along with 2003 All Stars Kevin White and Chris Wright will be on hand at the event. The event itself honors all of the amateur baseball Champions in Massachusetts as well as the announcement of the BoSox Man of the Year. This is the sixth time that the team has been invited to attend, as the team has won a record six Yawkey Baseball League Championships( 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 ). The event will give the Somerville Alibrandis Club a forum to publicly thank Tony Alibrandi of Alibrandis Barber Shop, Somerville Mayor Dorothy Kelley Gay, the Parks Department Bert Switzer, the Yawkey Trust, the Boston Red Sox, and all of the supporters, boosters and fans who have followed the team all season long.

Inf - Chris Banda announces retirement
Chris Banda, who scored the go-ahead run in game one of the 2003 YBL Championship Series, announced his retirement from the YBL. Banda was an all star shortstop in 1999 and was a member of all six championships teams. The team announced that his uniform number, 9, would be retired to honor his tremendous career with the team.

Alibrandis Star's Shine in YBL All Star Game
The 2003 Yawkey Baseball League All Star Game took place this past Sunday at Jim Rice Field in Boston. Sal Mandonca and Tom McDonough represented the Somerville Alibrandis Club at the game for the Bill Stewart Conference All Stars. Both players played well in the game as the Stewart Stars earned a 10-4 victory over the Dan Tarpey Conference All Stars. Mandonca played second base and went 2-4 with a walk and 2 runs batted in. McDonough played shortstop and went 2-5 with a run scored.

Alibrandis end year 20th best in the Nation
Somerville Alibrandis has finished the 2003 Season ranked by the National Semi-Pro Baseball Association as the 20th best team in the Nation. The rankings also put the team as the highest rated team in the state, earning the State Championship in the local rankings. The team opened the season in the #11 spot by the NSPBA, and fell out of the rankings for part of the season. The team was able to crack the list again on its strong finsih that included its 6th YBL Championship. The YBL also enjoyed National Attention as it was voted the 12th best Semi-Pro Baseball League in the United States.

Lexington Minuteman does story on YBL
The Lexington Minuteman did a feature story on Semi-Pro Baseball in the Greater Boston Area. The story includes quotes from Somerville Alibrandis Team President David Treska and Head Coach Mike Powers. Please click on the headline link to get to the Lexington Minuteman website to read the story.

Alibrandis Eliminate WR 3-1 and advance to YBL Finals
For the 5th consecutive season the Alibrandis Baseball Club will appear in the Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series, defeating the West Roxbury Broncos 3-1. The series was a hard fought 4 games highlighted by great pitching from both teams, but the team from Somerville got key hits in games 2, 3 and 4 and were able to eliminate the Broncos. West Roxbury was the 6 seed, and they upset the 3rd seeded Brookline Dodgers to get to the second round. They end the year with a final record of 21-13-2, as Alibrandis improves to a 28-7 overall record in 2003.

In game 1 of the series Derek Bates pitched great but suffered his first loss of the year. He was outduled by the Broncos Steve Szathmary. Szathmary, a Somerville native, shutout the local 9 as he did not walk anyone and struck out 7 en route to the 1-0 victory for West Roxbury. Alibrandis had a chance in the bottom of the 7th to tie the game when Adjatay Nyadjroh was robbed by a diving catch in cf to end the game. That catch and win by West Roxbury was the first loss at home for Alibrandis in the playoffs since losing game 5 of the semi-finals in 1998, a YBL record of 26 games.

With the team down 1-0 for the first time in a series since 1995 they turned to Marc DesRoches who was dominant in his 2nd start of the year. He did not allow West Roxbury to get anything going and picked up the complete game win to even the series at 1-1. Shortstop David Scioli hit 2 run HR to lead the offense in the game and it helped him earn the teams MooreLumber.com Hitter of the Week.

West Roxbury did get the all important split at Trum as the sceen shifted to Billings Field in West Roxbury. Manager Mike Powers called his own number to pitch game 3 and he turned in a gutsy performance. Powers went 4 2/3 innings, only allowing one run. With the team down 1-0 in the fifth, Sal Mendonca hit a clutch 2 out single to score Frank "Tank" McPherson to even the score and go the scoring started as the Somerville squad added 3 more runs to take a comanding 4-1 lead. Powers gave way to game 1 started Bates. Bates not acustomed to pitching in relief had a clutch performance workin gout of a bases loaded two outs and their 4th batter and All Star Phil Davies up. Bates struck out Davies on 4 pitches out to end the rally. Bates finsihed the game and earned the win that put up Somerville 2-1 in the best of 5 series.

Steve Szathmary was on the mound again for West Roxbury who was hoping to force a game 5 in the series. Szathmary was on his game again, as he no hit the Alibrandis team for 6 1/3 innings, when Kevin White broke it up with a single. Somerville countered with Scott Rodgers, who was equally impressive as he allowed only 2 hits thorouh the same period of the game. Neither team was able to score a run in this quickly moving pitchers duel. In the top of the 7th with one out Szathmary walked Scioli. This was Szathmary's first base on balls of the series, but he bounced back to get the second out of the inning. "Tank" McPhearson was able to keep the inning going with a single to right, putting runners on the coners. Needing a hit to put the team ahead, David Treska hit the very next pitch for a solid single to center field to put Somerville ahead 1-0, scoring Scioli from third base. Rodgers did the rest as he retired West Roxbury in the bottom of the inning for the game and series clinching victory. Rodgers pitched a complete game, shut out, 3 hitter to earn the MyMoney.com Pitcher of the Week.

Alibrandis defeat T's 3-1 in opening round
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the Brighton T's Mariners 3 games to 1, to win the first round match up and advance to the Semi-Finals of the Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs. The series started very easy for Somerville as they shutout the Mariners 9-0. Derek Bates pitched 6 innings, before turning it over to Marc DesRoches for the save and a 1-2-3 seventh. Bates scattered 4 hits and struck out 7 to pick up the opening game win. Alibrandis bats were on fire as they scored in all 6 innings, led by leadoff hitter Kevin White who was 3-4, ands scored 3 runs.
Game 2 was pushed back a day as rain came and postponed the game from Tuesday to Wednesday. Somerville was able to put up 6 more runs in the game as they were able to overcome an early 1-0 deficit to win game 2 and take a commanding series lead. DesRoches who earned the save in game 1, was thrust into the rotation and after letting up the early run did not allow another hitter past first base and pitched 6 shut out innings to earn the game 2 victory. White again was the catalyst for the offense, he collected 3 more hits and scored 2 more runs in the win.
With the Mariners backs to the wall they called upon YBL veteran Dan Pill to pitch the game. Pill was the star of game 3, as he allowed 1 run and 3 hits to get the complete game victory. The win for the Mariners ended Somerville's 13 game playoff winnings streak( game 4 2001 Finals, 10-0 2002 Playoffs and games 1-2 in 2003 ) and it ended a 14 game streak of consecutive wins in round 1 games( 1999-2003 ). Despite the loss Alibrandis was able to put itself together for game 4 and close out the series at Ronan Park last Friday night. It was a very close game that went back and forth all night. Somerville starter Chad Feetham pitched well and kept the local 9 in the game as he turned it over to the bullpen. Ed Velosa pitched the 5th and 6th to earn the win and DesRoches pitched the 7th to pick up his second save of the series. DesRoches pitching earned him the MyMoney.Com Pitcher of the Week. The teams other player of the week, Kevin White was again the reason the offense was able to produce all the runs it needed as he scored 2 runs as he lead the team to earn the Moore Lumber.Com Hitter of the Week.
The Mariners fought hard in game 4 and made it close, but feel short in losing the game 7-6 and the series. The Mariners end the season at 16-16-1.

Alibrandis Clinch 7th consecutive YBL Playoff Appearance
With a win last week against the West Roxbury Broncos the Somerville Alibrandis Club clinched a playoff spot in the Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs for the 7th consecutive season. The playoff berth is the first step as the team continues its quest to win its 6th YBL Championship. The game versus West Roxbury had a playoff feel. Two of the leagues best pitchers matched up as Derek Bates took on West Roxburys and Somerville native Steve Szathmary. Bates pitched 5 strong innings, allowing only 1 run on route to his 12th win of the season. Alibrandi bats were able to get to Szathmany early as Dave Scioli hit his 4th homerun to take a 1-0 lead. Kevin White hit his second of 3 doubles in the game to drive in the second run. After jumping out to the early 2-0, the Broncos came back with a run in the 4th to make it cut the lead in half. White took over the game from there as he hit his second home run of season with a runner on to increase the lead to 4-1 and then provided a RBI doubled to round out the scoring. Whites performance of 4-4, 3 doubles, HR and 4 RBIs earned him the Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week honors. Marc DesRoches pitched 2 scoreless innings in relief of Bates for his first save of the year.
After the big win versus the Broncos the Somerville team was set up for a let down as the 7-19 Brighton Twins came to Trum. The Twins took advantage early and got a 1-0 lead off starter Scott Rodgers. But for the second game in a row Dave Scioli got the scoring started with broken bat single to tie game. Rodgers pitched well and did not allow another Twins runner past first base. In the 6th, Alibrandis was able to lead the bases and with one out Mike Powers lined a single to right to score the go ahead run and they never looked back as they went on to beat the Brighton Twins 4-2. DesRoches was called upon again to close the game and pitched the 6th and 7th for his second save in as many nights. DesRoches got the MyMoney.com pitcher of the week with his 2 saves, 6 strikeouts in his 4 innings of work.
ALIBRANDIS NOTES: The team played every day this week with games on Monday versus the Brighton Black Sox at Trum, Tuesday versus the Hyde Park Kings, Wednesday versus the Brighton Ts Mariners and Tonight versus AlThomas Club at Healy Field. Next week the team plays is final two games of the regular season. Monday August 11th the team plays East Boston at Noyes and Savin Hill at McConnell. The Yawkey Baseball League playoffs are scheduled to start on August 14th, check the League website at yawkeybaseball.com for more information. The Yawkey Baseball League All Star Game was postponed last week as the Boston Red Sox has to do some maintenance at Fenway Park after the New York Yankees series. The game will be made up, no date has been announced.

YBL Announce Alibrandis All Star for 2003
The Yawkey Baseball League will take place this upcoming July 30th and the leauge announce the teams today and 4 Somerville players were named to the squad. Derek Bates(P), Kevin White(2B), David Scioli(SS) and Chris Wright all make a return trip to Fenway Park to represent the City of Somerville in the game. Somerville's Mike Powers and David Treska were named to the coaching staff as well. This is the 11th Annual Game held at Historic Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. The game starts at 10am and tickets can be purchaed the day of the game at Fenway Park( adults $5.00 and kids under 12 are free ). For more information please check out the YBL site by clicking on the headline link or by calling the YBL Hotline at 781-575-6115.

Alibrandis players Sal Mendonca and Brendon Timmons have been invited to take part in the 10th Annual Steve Buckley Old-Time Baseball Game. This event will showcase some of Greater Boston's finest amateur baseball players who will assemble at St. Peter's Field, Sherman Street, North Cambridge, on Thursday, August 14 for the game. This year's game is being played as a fundraiser for the Massachusetts Special Olympics. Gametime is 7 p.m.

What makes the Oldtime Baseball Game so special is the glittering array of old-style flannel uniforms worn by the players. Used just once a year for the Oldtime Baseball Game, the uniforms represent such long-ago teams as the Brooklyn Dodgers, St. Louis Browns and Boston Braves. Negro League teams are represented by the Kansas City Monarchs, Baltimore Elite Giants and Homestead Grays. Even long-ago minor-league teams are represented, including the San Francisco Seals, Oakland Oaks and Roswell Rockets.

The Oldtime Baseball Game features amateur players from throughout the area, representing such schools as Harvard, Tufts, Northeastern, Boston College, Suffolk and Holy Cross. Among the players who will take part in this year's game is Damian Costantino of Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I., who earlier this year set an NCAA record by hitting in 60 consecutive games.

Though not billed as an "all-star" game, more than 15 players from the Oldtime Baseball Game have gone on to play professional baseball. Jeff Allison of Peabody, who pitched in last year's game, was selected in the first round of this year's amateur draft by the Florida Marlins. Carlos Pena of Haverhill and Northeastern University, who played in the Oldtime Baseball Game in 1996 and 1997, now plays for the Detroit Tigers -- the first alumnus of the game to play in the big leagues.

For the fifth straight year, former major-leaguer Lennie Merullo, who played for the Chicago Cubs in the 1940s and then was a big-league scout for more than 50 years, will be a coach in the Oldtime Baseball Game.

For more information about this year's game, call Marlinda Langone at 781-944-3080. Emails can be sent to Goinyard@aol.com.

Alibrandis Prepare for the Stretch Drive
The Somerville Alibrandis are on the verge of clinching a playoff spot in the Yawkey Baseball League in an attempt to win a fifth League Championship. This past week Alibrandis had a perfect 4-0 record and improved its over all season record to 18-5, good enough for first place in the Bill Stewart Conference.
It was an impressive week as three out of the four victories were shutouts, and the offense outscored its opponents in the four games 23-4.
In earning another MyMoney.com pitcher of the week Derek Bates picked up his 9th and 10th wins of the season, as wll as being honored with his 4th All Star selection. Bates pitched started against the Brighton Twins and had a complete game shutout and came back on a few days rest to pitch a 1-2-3 seventh to earn the YBL best 10th win versus the Brighton Braves. Chad Feetham and Scott Rodgers got the other victories of the week, with solid performances from Brian Kosta, Shawn Nadeau, John Guallteri and Ed Velosa.
The Offensive has been putting up runs being led by Kevin White, Chris Wright and David Scioli

Alibrandis Improve to 12-2
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team took 2 games last week in Yawkey Baseball League action and improved its overall record to a Conference Best 12-2 record. They are also a half game behind the top team in the league South Boston as they race to secure home field advantage in the post season.
The first game of the week was against the Savin Hill Hornets at McConnell Park. Kevin White lead off the game with a double and eventually scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Chris Wright. That run was more then enough as the team went on to a 7-0 victory. Scott Rodgers pitched a complete game to earn his 5th win of the season. Rodgers also collected his second MyMoney.com Pitcher of the Week for that win.
The local team then made its way to Rogers Park in Brighton to take on the Brighton Twins. The Twins have had a disappointing season, but played tough forcing the game to go to extra innings. Somerville exploded for 9 runs in the top of the 9th , paced by home runs off the bats of Kevin White( Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week ) and David Scioli.
The team played the Conferences second and third place teams on Monday and Tuesday( Brookline Dodgers at Trum and Brighton Black Sox at Rogers ). These are important games as they will help decide tie breakers at the end of the season. After the two in conference games they went out of conference playing the McKay Club Bulldogs last and they return to Trum this Saturday afternoon to play the Brighton Ts Club.

Alibrandis Take Over Conference Lead
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team fought off a slow start this season and now stands atop the Stewart Conference of the Yawkey Baseball League. Since dropping the opening game of the season, the team has gone 10-1 and took important games last week against the then first place teams Brookline Dodgers and the Brighton Black Sox. The team has been lead by the dominating pitching of Derek Bates, who is 4-0 with a 1.67 ERA, 40 stirkeouts in 29.1 innings this season. Offensively Chris Wright has leaded the team, collecting 15 hits in the first 12 games. Wright has a team best .455 batting average and the teams only home run this season.
This past week the team played games on Monday versus the Savin Hill Hornets at Trum and versus the Brighton Twins on the road. Then the local squad gets the July 4th weekend off and pick up the action again at Trum on July 7th versus the Dodgers and go on the road to play the Black Sox at Rogers Park and Wednesday the McKay Club Bulldogs at Ronan Park in Dorchester

Alibrandis Split first 2 games of trip
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team is not playing like a 4 time defending Champion as they split 2 games last week and now stand at 3-2 and are in 3rd place in the Yawkey Baseball Leagues Stewart Conference. The team had shown signs of life after a 2-0 opening day loss to South Boston, winning 2 games in a row at Trum. They went on the road and took on the West Roxbury Broncos at Billings Field. It was a pitcher duel as Derek Bates battled with West Roxbury's pitcher for 7 shut out innings. As they went to the top of the 8th Alibrandis got on the board putting up a 5 runs, sparked by David Sciloi's RBI single scoring Kevin Doyle who doubled to start off the inning. Bates earned the win improving his record to 2-0 and has a 14 inning scoreless inning streak going.
With their record at 3-1 and playing better baseball the local club had a change to get some revenge on South Boston for the opening day loss. South Boston was all over Somerville pitching as they put up a 7 spot in the first and never looked back. Since sweeping South Boston in last yeas Championship Series, Alibrandis has lost the season series, been shut out for 14 innings and allowed 11 runs to Southie in the 2 games.

Alibrandis to Start Longest Road Trip of the Season
The Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Team start their longest stretch of road games as they will play their next 5 games away from Trum Field. The trip started last Monday and Wednesday as they took on West Roxbury and East Boston, and they play tomorrow night at South Boston. The South Boston game will be a rematch of the opening day match up that Alibrandis lost 2-0. Next week Alibrandis continues away from home as they will play AlThomas Club and Savin Hill before returning to Trum Field on June 14th for a doubleheader versus the South End Astros.
Last weeks only game versus Hyde Park was cancelled so that the team could pay their respects on the passing of Joan Weston. Mrs Weston is the mother of former team manager and player of Erik Weston. Mrs Weston was a friend of the team and a huge supporter to its players and one if its biggest fans. All of the players and coaches send their condolences to the Weston Family. The Headline Link will bring you to the obituary in the Somerville Journal.

Alibrandis Improve to 2-1
After losing its first opening day game in 8 season, Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club picked up a pair of wins last week to improve its early season record to 2-1 in Yawkey Baseball League action. The teams first win of the season came versus the East Boston Blue Sox at newley renovated Trum Field. Derek Bates got his first start of the year and the reining YBL CY Young Award winner picked up where he left off last year, pitching a complete game to earn the 3-1 victory. Bates after giving up an early run in the top of the first he allowed one hit over the last 6 innings while striking out 14. The bats were still cold and opened the season being shut out in the first 10 innings of the season, but the offense got a boost from veteran David Sprague. Sprague who had taken a few years off, got a key RBI double to spark a 3 run rally that put the game out of reach and gave Somerville its first win of the season.

The next night the Somerville Nine took on the AlThomas Club of Milton. Scott Rogers took the ball to make his 2nd start as an member of the Alibrandis Club. Rogers was able to bounce back from his opening day loss to totally dominate the visitors who struck out 10 times and never got a runner past first base. In the 2 wins Bates and Rogers combined to strik out 28 batters and only allowing 6 hits in 14 innings of work, and they share the MyMoney.com Pitcher of the Week. The teams bats that begant o come around in the East Boston game were more consitsent and put up 5 runs on 9 hits. Mike Powers went 1-2 with 2 RBI and is the only player to hit safley in all 3 games of the young season. This weeks Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week is also shared with Sprague and Powers getting the honors.

The team gets an early break in the season and will play host to the Hyde Park Kings on Saturday May 31st. Alibrandis swept the 2002 series last year with Hyde Park. Derek Bates( 1-0, .0.70ERA 16K's ) is the scheduled starter. Despite the 2 game winning streak and boucning back from the opening day loss the team fell out of the National Semi-Pro Baseball Association's top 25 poll. They opened the season at 11, the same spot that they finished the 2002 season.

Alibrandis Drop Season Opener
The 2003 Yawkey Baseball League Season opened last weekend and the local squad, Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club lost their opening game to South Boston, 2-0. It was the first time that Alibrandis lost their opening game since the 1995 season and it is the first time the team has been under .500 since the 1996 season.

Scott Rogers made his Somerville debut as the games starting pitcher. Rogers was acquired in the off season from the South End Astors, where he was a finalist for the Yawkey Baseball Leagues Cy Young Award for the leagues best pitcher. Rogers started out strong, but ran into a jam in the 3rd. South Boston capitalized on a hit and 3 walks to push across the games first run. That run proved to be enough as the Alibrandis bats were ice cold. They hit into 3 double plays and stranded 5 runners as they were shutout. Alibrandis was only shut out once in 2002, ironically it was Rogers who was then with the Astros. The offence only were able to produce 3 hits, led by David Treska who was 1-1 with a walk in earning the teams Moore Lumber Hitter of the Week. Rogers gave up another run in the 4th and was relieved by Derek Bates in the 5th inning. Bates the 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Cy Young Award winner and fresh off his senior season at Bentley College, pitched 3 innings of shutout baseball to get the MyMoney.com's Pitcher of the Week( 3IP, 4K's, 0.00ERA ).

Alibrandis Ready to Kick Off 2003 Season
The 2003 Yawkey Baseball League Season is set to kick-off this Saturday. The 4-time defending Yawkey League Champion Somerville Alibrandis will begin its title defense and quest for a record 6th Championship. The opener as customary in the YBL will be a rematch of the prior years Championship series, and the South Boston/NAGE will visit St Peters Field in Cambridge for the 7:30 start. Alibrandis defeated South Boston last year 4 games to none, it was the third straight series sweep of South Boston in a playoff series versus Alibrandis( 1999 Finals 4-0, 2001 Quaterfinals 3-0, 2002 Finals 4-0 ).

The team will once again be lead on the field by manager Mike Powers. Powers who in his 6 years at the helm has earned 3 manager of the year awards. Powers will again have a deep pitching staff, headed by 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Cy Young Award winner Derek Bates. Bates, a Somerville High School and Bentley College graduate, went 6-1 last year in the regular season with a league best 82 strikeouts and 1.33 earned run average. Shawn Nadeau( Salem State College, and 3 time YBL All Star ), Jay Manning( University of Hartford ),and Ed Velosa( North Shore Community College ) are probably the deepest staff in the league. The team has also added YBL All Star Scott Rogers, who played last year for the South End Astros. Alibrandis also brings a deep bullpen with Paul Gatley( Bryant College ), Ben Decker( Salem State College ), John Gualtieri( Bunker Hill ), Chad Feetham and Marc DesRoches( Providence College ).

The offense will be lead by 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Most Valuable Player Marc DesRoches. DesRoches was finished the year 5th in batting average( .409 ) and led the league in RBIs with 36. Along with DesRoches the team had 3 more batter finish in the top ten, Kevin Doyle( .438-0-28 ) finished 2nd, Tom McDonough( .409-1-10 ) had a breakout season finishing 6th and David Scioli( .403-3-21 ) finished 7th. Kevin White( 2002 YBL Championship Series Most Valuable Player ) will once again be a fixture at the top of order, when asked about the offence Powers was quoted as saying, "We have a great balance in the order, Kevin( White ) is one of the best leadoff hitter in the league. Doyle uses the whole field and takes advantage of the holes in the infield when we have runners on ahead of him. DesRoches is just a dominant force in this league, as is Scioli and (Chris) Wright They just do a great job in getting the table setters home for us."
They are also looking for some of the younger players in 2002 to improve and become All Stars in the future. Sal Mandonca( Framingham State ), and Frank McPhearson( UMass ) had very good seasons in 2002 and will be looked upon to add more production in 2003 and help build the base along with Bates, Manning, McDonough, and Scioli as the future of the team. Veterans David Treska, Mike Powers, Ted DesRoches, Chris Banda and Brian Kosta will provide leadership and help make the bench the deepest in the league.

As for the coaching staff Rob McDonough will back assisting Powers for the 3rd season and former player David Sprague will also join the staff as a hitting coach.

For our complete 2003 Schedule click on the Headline Link or go to our schedule or calendar.

Alibrandis ranked 11th in 2003 Pre-Season National Ranking
The National Semi-Pro Baseball Association( NSPBA )has come out with its pre-season top 25 National Rankings and Somerville Highlander Alumni / Alibrandis Baseball Club has earned the #11 spot in the poll. The team finsihed the 2002 season with the same #11 ranking, after starting the year unranked.

Jim Schaefer to be inducted to YBL Hall of Fame
Long time Alibrandis player Jim Schaefer, will be inducted into the YBL's Hall of Fame at the 2003 League Awards Dinner on June 7th. Jim was the teams first all star and was the MVP of the playoffs in 1997, the teams first Championship season. He was a dominant player in the Yawkey League and in is 11 year career he posted a .372 average(276-741). He was a player that combined speed and power, hitting 20 career home runs and driving in 135 RBI's as well as stealing 124 bases. His shinning moment was the 1997 League Playoffs where he helped lead the team to the YBL Title over the Brighton Lincoln Black Sox. In the 15 games that post-season Jimmy went 21-49(.429) hit 2 Home Runs, scored 18 runs, drove in 11 and stole 12 while providing solid defense in center field. He was a member of 4 Yawkey Baseball League Championship teams( 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001 ). In 1994 Jimmy took part in his second league all star game at Fenway Park, where he went 1-3 and had an outfiled assist. Jimmy will be the forth person from Alibrandis to enter the Hall of Fame. Team sponsor Tony Alibrandi entered in 2000 and Erik Weston and Joe Lotti entered in 2002.
The Yawkey League will also honor its award winners from the 2002 Baseball Season, and the Somerville's team were well represented in receiving the honors. The team will receive its 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Championship Trophey. Marc DesRoches was voted the League MVP and Derek Bates was vote the Leagues Top Pitcher. The team also won its share of gold gloves and silver slugger awards. The top hitters at their positions included Kevin Doyle( catcher ), Marc DesRoches( third base ) and David Scioli( shortstop ). The gold glovers were Kevin Doyle( cathcer ), Kevin White( second base ), Marc DesRoches( third base ) and David Scioli( shortstop ).

Alibrandis Alumni Scott Friedholm joins UMaine Staff
Scott Friedholm, a former Somerville Alibrandis Alumni member joined the Uninversity of Maine coaching staff in 2002 where he serves as the teams pitching coach.
Prior to his arrival in Maine, Scott spent the 2000 and 2001 seasons as pitching coach at Bryant College. During his tenure at Bryant, Scott coached the pitching staff to school records in both overall and conference victories in consecutive seasons.
Scott played breifly with Alibrandis in 1998 before he was signed to a free agent contract in June by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, where he was assigned to the St. Petersburg Devil Rays of the Class A Florida State League. He attended Tampa Bays spring training camp in 1999.
Scott was a four-year letterwinner at Providence College, where he earned third team ABCA All-American honors in 1998 as a senior catcher for the Friars. He finished the 1998 season with a team-high .395 batting average, 13 home runs, and a school record 66 RBI, and received All-Region and All-Big East honors. Friedholm was also named Providence Colleges Male Athlete of the Year in 1998. He also earned All-Big East and All-Region honors in 1996, as a sophomore.
In Scott's breif stint in the Yawkey League he batted .500(6-12)with 2 doubles, 1 home run and 5 runs batted in.

P - Joe Stanton retires from the YBL.
Joe Stanton, an important member of the teams starting rotation over the years has retired from the YBL. Joe the MVP of the 2001 YBL All Star Game at Fenway Park, enjoyed a solid career in the league and retires with 3 YBL Championships under his belt.

P - Jarrod Brucato announced his retirement
Jarrod Brucato called it a career today and retires as an active player in the YBL. Jarrod who played College Baseball at Providene College, enjoyed 2 successful seasons as a member of the Alibrandis Baseball Club earning a Championship both years. He was a valuable pitcher out of the bullpen and as a spot starter when needed.

Alibrandis Earns the 4th Top Sports Story in 2002
The Somerville Journal has ranked the top Sports Stories for the year and Alibrandis Baseball Club made the list in the number 4 spot. It is the top non-Somerville High School Sports Story. Please click on the Headline Link to read the full story at the Journals Web Site.

Tom Cassell 1930-2002
Tom Cassell founder and Head Coach of Somerville's Intercity Baseball League Team the Cassell Club passed away on December 30th. Tom has been coaching in Somerville for decades and his teams have always been competive in the Intercity League. Many past and present Alibrandis players have benifited from time on his team and his teaching of the game. He was also a great supporter of the team offering advise, make up dates and players to our team. Tom leaves behind his wife Katherine 4 childeren, 2 brothers, 3 sisters and 7 grandchildren. All of our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Click on the headline link to read a feature story from last summer about Tom.

Alibrandis head coach Mike Powers has been named the Head Varisty Baseball Coach for Somerville High School today. Powers played on the High School Team in 1986 and 1987. He brings a impressive resume of coaching experience from working at the Middlesex Baseball Camp with former SHS Coach Joe DiSarcina to he is expereince at the college level with Newbury College and Bunker Hill Community College. His Yawkey League experience should do him well as he tries to build a team to contend for the Greater Boston League Title. The last SHS team to win the the league title was in Mike's senior year of 1987, when the team won the title and lost in the EMass Semi's to Lowell High School at Trum Field.

Inf - Ben Fuller Announces Retirement
Ben Fuller, a key member of Somerville Alibrandis baseball team has decided to call it a career today. "Dirty" Ben played a significant role filling in at third base, first base, left field and DH. He also provided a key bat off the bench and in 2001 he earned a YBL Silver Bat Award. He was on 4 YBL CHampionship Team and took part in one Fenway Park All Star Game as a member of the coaching staff as the bullpen coach/cathcer in 2001.

BoSox Club honors the 2002 YBL Champions
The official boster club of the Boston Red Sox honored the Alumni Team for the fifth time in six seasons for winning the Yawkey Baseball League Championship. The event will be held at the Newton Marriot on Septermber 27th. All of the amateur baseball champions from accross New England will be in attendance. The BoSox will also its 2002 Man of the Year Award. Past winners include Wade Boggs, Trot Nixon and John Harrington.

The 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Champions Somerville Alibrandis have completed another increible season this past summer. The local 9 earned thier 5th YBL Championship, matching the most titles by a team in the YBL with the AlThomas Athetics of Milton( 81,82,88,89,93 ) and are the only team to suceesfully defend thier title in 4 conseutive seasons. They also matched thier league record of sweeping all 3 series in going 10-0 in the postseason. In doing that they improved thier 2002 overall record to 36-6, winning their last 21 games. In the 4 playoff runs the teams playoff record is 40-2. Kevin White was named the MVP of the Yawkey Leage Playoffs, this was his frist time earning that honor. The team will be honored later this month when Team President David Treska, manager Mike Powers and Sponsor Tony Alibrandi will be attendance at the annual BoSox Club Luncheon to recieve the 2002 Championship Trophy.

Somerville take out South Boston 4-0 to earn YBL Title!!
For the 4th year in a row and the 5th time in 6 seasons the Somerville Alibrandi Baseball Club has captured the Yawkey Baseball League of Boston's Championship.
The completed a perfect 10-0 playoff run, finishing off Southie 4-0 on the way to the 2002 title. This is the second time that the team has gone undefeated in the Championship Tournament. The sweep is also the 3rd consecutive series sweep of South Boston in the playoffs winning all 11 meetings( 99 Finals 4-0, 01 Semis 3-0, 02 Finals 4-0 ). South Boston ends the year as the first ever Harrington Conference Champions with an over all record of 28-15-2.

Alibrandis Sweeps AlThomas Club out of the playoffs, 3 - 0.
In what was a closer series then the 3-0 sweep would tell you, the Alibrandis Baseball Club defeated the AlThomas Athletics in the first round of the 2002 Yawkey Baseball League Playoffs. Alibrandis will await the completion of the other playoff series to see who they will match up with in the next round. The 3 game sweep is a bit of a revenge as AlThomas swept Alibrandis out of the 1995 Playoffs. AlThomas final record for the 2002 season is 16-18-1, as Alibrandis imporoves to 29-6.

Alibrandis Sweep South End, and Advance to the YBL Finals.
For the 4th consecutive season the Alibrandis Baseball Club will appear in the Yawkey Baseball League Championship Series, sweeping the South End Astros 3-0. The series was a hard fought 3 games, but the team from Somerville got key hits in all 3 games and were able to eliminate the Astros. South End was the 5 seed, and they upset the 4th seeded Brighton Twins to get to the second round. They end the year with a final record of 23-16-1, as Alibrandis inproves to a 32-6 overall record in 2002.

For the 5th consecutive year the Alibrandis team sent 5 players to play at Fenway Park, as well as the coaching staff of the Stewart All Stars, Mike Powers( mgr ), Shawn Nadeau, David Treska and Rob McDonough( asst coaches ) The Stewart All Stars defeated The Tarpey All Stars. The 5 players from Alibradnis are David Scioli( ss ), Marc DesRoches( 3B ), Kevin Doyle( c ), Derek Bates( p/1B ) and Tom McDonough( of ). Scioli making his first appearance at Fenway went 2-3. Scioli, Doyle and DesRoches were all starters in the game. Derek Bates would have started his 3rd conseutive game, but he pitched the night before in game round of round 1 in the YBL Playoffs. Tom McDonough played solid defense in the game, including a shoestring catch to end the game to secure the win for our Stars. Powers and the Alibrandis staff improved its record at Fenway to 5-1. This was the 10th annual YBL All Star Game held at Fenway Park.

Yawkey League ranked 11th Best in Nation
The Yawkey Baseball League has been voted the 11th best Semi-Pro Baseball League in the Nation in the final poll of the 2002 season by the National Semi-Pro Baseball Association. The ranking also puts the YBL as the top ranked team in Massachusetts. Along with the league honors, David Treska has also been named Massachusetts State Director and Northeastern USA Regional Director.

YBL Announces Top Fielder and Hitter Awards
The YBL Announced the League's Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award today. This is the second year that the league has given out these awards. Somerville Alibrandis was well represented taking home a record 9 awards. The 2001 Winners will be recognized at the YBL Banquet on June 7th. Here is a list of Somerville Players that won this year.

The YBL has inducted long time Alibrandi player, coach, manager and board member Erik Weston and 18 year veteran Joe Lotti into the Leagues Hall of Fame. They will both be inducted at the annual league banquet this summer. Weston and Lotti both began their careers in the then Junior Park League with the Brighton Braves. Weston joined Alibrandis in 1990, the teams first season. Lotti later joined in 1995. They both have made tremendous contributions to the league and the teams that they have played on. The inductions will take place on June 7th at the annual awards banquet.

Team announces Erik Weston's #5 will be retired
Newly inducted YBL Hall of Famer Erik Weston will have his number 5 retired this season. Erik has been involved with Somerville Alibrandis/Highlander Alumni Baseball since its first season in 1990. The ceremony will take place prior to a game this season.

Erik Weston retires from the YBL
Long time Yawkey League player, coach and manager Erik Weston has announced his retirement. Erik started his career with the Brighton Braves in the late 80's and joined up with the Somerville team in the middle of its first season. He was a fixture at first base, until he stepped down from playing to take over the managers job for the 1994 season. In his second year, he was able to lead the team to its first playoff appearance and the upset of the top seeded playoff team Mahon Cable. After taking a year off in 1997 he returned to the time as a part time player and bench coach.
He will stay involved with the team as an assistant to the team president and serve as a member of its Board of Directors.

OF - Jim Schaefer announces retirement
The teams first all star back from the 1990 season has announced his retirement from the YBL today. He retires with a .389 career regular season average 119 stolen bases and was the MVP during the 1997 Championship Series. He was a Fenway Park All Star in 1994, where he started in Right Field.

Team Hall of Famers to be honored in 2002
The first 2 classes of Team Hall of Famers will be honored in a pre-game ceremony during the 2002 season. The 5 members of the hall will throw out the first pitch and be give their Hall of Fame plague to signify the honor. Tony Alibrandi(2000), David Sprague(2000), Al Chute(2000), Jim Plunket(2001) and Rich Iandoli(2001) make up the teams hall. The date of the ceremony has not yet been announced, so please check back for the date of the game.

Inf - Joe Lotti announces his retirement
A 15 year veteran of the YBL, Joe Lotti has announced his retirement from playing in the league today. Joe played for the Brighton Braves, where he was an all star third baseman, and later for the Somerville Alibrandis team. Joe hold the all time record for postseason batting average( 1995- .591 ) and is the teams leader all time in that category. Joe will stay involved with the team as a part time infield and hitting instructor.

Alibrandis Wins 2001 Yawkey League Championship
For the 4th time in 5 seasons with the last 3 coming in consecutive season the Somerville Alibrandis Baseball Club have won the Yawkey Baseball League Championship, defeating the Brighton Lincoln Black Sox 4 games to 1. The "3-peat" is a feat that had never been accomplished in the history of the YBL. The final combined record for the 2001 season is 35-8, going 10-1 in the playoffs. In this run over the past 5 years the team has a combined overall record of 163-38, an incredible 125 games over .500.

Alibrandis Advance to YBL Finals for 4th time in 5 seasons
After defeating the SB Nage team in what was possibly the greatest YBL game ever, the Somerville Alibrandis advance to the league finals to take on the Brighton Lincoln Black Sox. This will be a rematch of the 1997 Finals, where the team from Somerville claimed a 7 game series to earn their first YBL Championship.

Alibrandis wins 5th Conference Championship
With its 3-2 victory over the Brighton Lincoln Black Sox, Alibrandis clinched its 5th consecutive Conference Championship in a row(Tarpey 1997, Stewart 1998,1999,2000,2001). It also gave the team the leagues best overall record for the fourth consecutive season, giving them home field advantage through out the playoffs.

2001 All Stars Named

The YBL has announced the All Stars for the 2001 Annual All Star Game at Fenway Park. The game which will be August 9th, will be a contest pitting the Stewart Stars versus the Tarpey Stars. Alibrandis will again be well represented send 5 players and the coaching staff to the game. Chris Wright, Derek Bates, Kevin Doyle, Kevin White and Mike Powers will be playing the game. The team from Somerville will also be sending the coaching staff. Powers who is also the manager of the team, will be replaced by asst manager Shawn Nadeau who will take charge of the conference stars making this the 5th game in a row where we have managed the team. Rob McDonough and one other player will join the staff to assist in helping the bullpen staff get the pitchers ready to enter the game.

YBL Banquet Honors 2000 Champions
The YBL held its banquet past weekend at the local IBEW Union Hall in Dorchester and the team from Somerville were honored for its 2000 League Title. Team owner David Treska, Manager Mike Powers and Team Sponsor Tony Alibrandi were awarded the League Championship Trophy and all the members of the team were given their Championship Rings.
The League also honored Treska, Kevin Doyle and Marc DesRoches as Gold Glove Award winners and Doyle, Chris Wright and Joe Stanton were awarded Silver Slugger Awards.

Inf - Rich Iandoli Announces Retirement
After missing the entire 2000 season with an injured back Rich Iandoli is calling it a career today. Rich was a key part of 2 YBL Championships. His best season was in 1997 when he batted .372( 16-43 ) with 16 walks, and was on the 1998 All Star Team at Fenway Park where he went 1-3 with an RBI. The team announced that Rich will be staying on with the team as its chief financial officer.

OF- David Sprague Announces Retirement
Long time Alibrandis outfielder David Sprague has officially called it quits from playing baseball in the YBL. He was one of the original 9 in the very first game played in 1990 and has been part of the team his whole YBL career. David played 8 full season, and was injured for 4 season with various aliments, and his career numbers are very impressive. He was a career .335 hitter, his best year was 1998 when he batted .363 with 3 home runs and 22 RBI's. That season he was a member of the YBL's Fenway Park All Star Game, where he went 3-3 and was named the games co-MVP. The team has announced that he will stay involved with the team as its official statistion.

OF- Paul Wright Announces Retirement
Paul Wright has announced his retirement form the YBL today. Paul played 4 seasons(94,98-00) and ends his career with a .299 average. His 1994 season earned him the teams Rookie of the Year Award. He went 20-67(.299) and he scored 17 Runs while driving in 10 RBI's.
The team announced that he will be staying with the team in the front office as the Sports Information Director.

Team Retires #1 in honor of Tony Alibrandi
In honor for his years of support and for his induction into the Yawkey Baseball League Hall of Fame the team has announced that they will retire the #1. Tony will be honored in a pregame ceremony prior to the season opener for the 2001 season

Treska nominated for YBL Board of Directors
Team President David Treska was voted onto the League's Board of Directors for the 6th season.